


Chance Meeting

by FireflySummerwynd



Series: Chance Meetings [1]
Category: Poison (US Band)
Genre: F/M, Glam Metal, Rock 'n' roll, country, hair metal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-06
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:41:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 46,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21687727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireflySummerwynd/pseuds/FireflySummerwynd
Relationships: Bobby Dall/Original Character(s)
Series: Chance Meetings [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1680529





	1. Prologue

“No, I’m done with the stress and Emotional torment of hanging around where I’m clearly not wanted. This’ll be the last Time ya ever see or hear from me again, if I’ve my way about it, Mama.”

Unwilling and unable to handle her mother’s Greed-fueled tyranny any longer, Aerin Byrne held up a hand to stop said mother from trying to argue the point. She was sick of being bossed around like she was a child, even though she was nearly twenty-seven Years old, just ’cuz she still lived under her mother’s roof. This moment was almost a decade in coming, but the Day’d finally come for her to leave behind everything she’d ever known and loved.

Grabbing her keys from the hook on the wall next to the side door, she turned her back on Katana Crosswhite once and for all. She didn’t know exactly where she’d wind up, how long it’d take her to get there, or what she’d do for money once she did. All she knew was that she needed to get outta North Carolina, ’cuz if she didn’t–and soon–she was gonna go outta her mind.

Kat dropped to her knees and started to sob as she watched her daughter walk away from her for the final Time. It felt like she’d just ripped out her beating heart to take with her, ’cuz the younger woman’d been the only family she’d left. Her father’d died a few Years ago, her son’d practically abandoned her when he’d gone to live with his own dad, and her mother’d abandoned her just a few months ago after trashing her hardwood floors. Even her baby brother didn’t speak to her anymore, and she was sure that her conniving bitch of a mother’d something–hell, everything–to do with that. Now with her daughter walking out on her, and even her best friends turning their backs on her, she’d no one left.

Ignoring the loud sobs she could still hear from inside the house, Aerin fired up the ratty lil car she’d bought. Well, Kat’d actually been the one to buy it, but it’d been put in her name and she’d paid the older woman back in full already, so she owed her nothing. That being said, it was Time for her to get outta Dodge, as the old adage went, before she found herself completely unable to. Part of her wanted to stay, but a bigger part knew that’d be nothing but detrimental to her, and in more ways than one.

“Goodbye, North Carolina–hello, wherever I End up,” she said as she backed outta the driveway for the final Time.

Without even looking at the house she’d lived in for the last two Years, she put her car in gear and headed up to the corner, which was a main thoroughfare and would take her to the nearby Interstate.


	2. One

_Nashville, Tennessee_

_June, 2019_

Aerin’d arrived in Nashville after taking her Time getting through the Appalachian Mountains once she’d left her mother’s house. While she was a fan of country Music–what girl born and raised in the South _wouldn’t_ like at least a lil of it?–that wasn’t why she’d decided to make a pit stop here. She was in need of gas, lest her car break down on the side of the road, not to mention a nap and coffee once she woke up. This’d just been the closest Town or City when she’d looked down at her gas gauge and seen that it was right at an eighth of a tank.

Once she’d caught that nap she’d wanted and fueled up, she’d decided to head to the first place she knew sold coffee that caught her eye. Sure, Starbucks was a bit on the expensive side for her tastes–she was no coffee connoisseur, after all–but she didn’t care about that. At the moment, she needed the caffeine and the bitter flavor of the Dark liquid in her mouth, or she was gonna lose her shit.

With her coffee in hand once it was finally made, the young woman turned to head outta the building and back to her car. She generally hated people–most especially the preppy, _more-money-than-sense_ types–and the sooner she could get outta here, the better. Besides, being agoraphobic at the very least just made her wanna get outside where she could get some relatively fresh Air even more. She certainly wasn’t expecting to all but collide with a brick wall right in the doorway, the hot coffee sloshing outta her cup making them both let out a yelp. Reacting to the pain of the hot coffee now all over her shirt, she didn’t even realize she’d actually collided with a person for a few moments.

Looking up when she realized someone was talking to her, Aerin didn’t expect to come face-to-face with none other than Ashley Purdy. Her jaw dropped as she registered the man standing in front of her, a scowl on his face as he pulled his own shirt out from his well-muscled, but skinny torso. Outta all the people she coulda literally run into–and with a scalding cup of coffee in her hand–why couldn’t it’ve been another average Joe like her instead of one of her idols?

“Watch where you’re going, lady,” the man in question snapped, glaring down at her.

“Some way to treat a person you’ve never met, asshole,” she quipped back, her stunned look turning into a scowl of her own.

Apparently, he wasn’t used to being talked to like that, ’cuz Ashley immediately looked taken aback.

“I’d have offered ya one of the T-shirts I’ve got in my car, but now I’m kinda liking the idea of making ya run around shirtless, if ya don’t have one of your own in your car,” the young woman growled.

“Wait a minute–I’m sorry,” he sighed.

“Too late for that,” Aerin snapped, reaching down to pull her shirt off. “I don’t do _I’m sorries_ and second chances, no matter who ya are.”

“At least lemme replace your coffee for ya,” the bassist said. “I wasn’t gonna to start with, but I admit that I wasn’t exactly paying attention, either.”

She couldn’t help rolling her eyes. “And what if I don’t wantcha to?”

Once again, Ashley seemed taken aback by her choice phrasing, and she couldn’t help rolling her eyes again at the absurdity of the situation. Uncaring of whether she hurt him or not, the young woman shoved past him, beyond ready to get outta this wet, sticky shirt–and _not_ get a public indecency charge slapped on her for it.

Like the gentleman his dearly-departed grama’d raised him to be, he turned and chased after her once it registered that he’d really pissed her off and she was leaving. He was stunned to see the ratty lil car she was driving, not to mention that it was stuffed to the brim with whatever belongings she possessed. Everything from clothes and shoes to guitars and amps was in that car, and it looked like she’d done her best to cover up the latter with the former to make it hard to tell what it was. Obviously, she didn’t want her stuff getting stolen whenever she’d to leave her car unattended, which was Natural.

Aerin practically growled at him as she unlocked the driver’s door, then stripped off her shirt before opening the back door. She didn’t appreciate his staring just ’cuz she was now shirtless–and about to be braless, once she got a shirt on again to hide her taking off her bra. Having tits and a pussy didn’t constitute being stared at, and if there was one thing she hated more than liars, cheats, and being censored, it was being treated like she was just a piece of meat.

“Sorry,” Ashley was quick to say as he covered his eyes.

“I told ya, I don’t wantcha replacing my coffee,” the young woman snapped as she dragged on one of her spare shirts.

“Well, I wanna,” he insisted. “As much as I wanna know why you’re living outta your car.”

“That obvious, huh?” Aerin said, her chuckle short and dry.

“Too obvious to somebody who’s done it a Time or three,” the bassist answered with a chuckle of his own.

“Oh, I’m sure–I’m no idiot, so I know who ya are,” she told him.

“Wait, really?” Ashley asked, his dropped jaw his only sign of surprise since he still had his eyes covered.

“Yeah. Bassist, backing vocalist, and–as far as I’m concerned–Primary songwriter of Black Veil Brides,” the young woman told him. “And ya can uncover your eyes now.”

“Yeah, I’m definitely _the_ Ashley Purdy,” he laughed. “Although it’s Andy that’s main songwriter, not me.”

“Yeah, well–if the shit he posts online’s anything to go by, he’s got LSD bad,” Aerin snorted.

“Please tell me you’re talking about something other than the drug,” he said, sounding a bit wary.

 _“Lead Singer Disease,_ as per what Nikki Sixx termed it in _The Heroin Diaries,”_ she laughed. “So no, definitely _not_ the drug.”

Unable to help a laugh, Ashley managed to talk her into letting him replace her coffee, but she quickly put a condition on it. If she told him why she was living outta her car, she wanted to know what was _really_ going on behind the scenes with Black Veil Brides. She was smart enough to figure out there was more going on than any of the band members were saying, that what he’d reportedly said about Warped Tour the previous Summer wasn’t just him saying fans needed to see the band then while they could ’cuz that’d be the last chance they’d get to see them on that particular tour.

He was a bit uncertain about granting her request, but he finally agreed to it ’cuz he was too curious about her current circumstances not to. Besides, he kinda got the feeling that she wasn’t asking to be nosy–at least, not entirely–but ’cuz she genuinely cared. Even if the only one she cared about was him, she still did and was concerned about the Future of one of her favorite bands.

After getting her a replacement and his own coffee, the bassist settled at a secluded table on the coffee shop’s outdoor patio. Okay, so maybe secluded wasn’t the best word, considering how busy this place pretty much always was, but it was certainly more private than any other table. They’d actually be able to hear each other without screaming, which meant that his inside scoop wouldn’t be overheard and leaked to the press.

“The reason I’m living outta my car’s that I got sick of living under my mother’s thumb,” Aerin told him bluntly once she was settled across from him.

“Wait, how old’re ya supposed to be?” he asked, now wondering if he was talking to a runaway teenager.

“I’ll be twenty-seven in October,” the young woman answered. “So yeah, I’ma runaway, but not a minor.”

“I’m half-tempted to ask for ID now,” Ashley chuckled, sipping his coffee.

Shooting him a challenging look, she pulled out her wallet, took something outta it, and slapped it down on the table in front of him.

“Damn–a Libra, huh?” the bassist asked, taking note of the Birth date on the license he was staring at. “And from North Carolina, too.”

“Guilty as charged on both counts,” Aerin snickered, taking her license back.

“All right–so you’re a runaway living outta your car,” he said, getting their conversation back on track. “Any idea about where you’re going, or what you’re gonna do once ya get there?”

The young woman took a deep breath and sighed, the Fire in her Chocolate eyes dimming till it simply died away. She looked absolutely dejected as she Thought about his question, not to mention how to answer it, and he didn’t like that. Ashley couldn’t help the urge to reach out and cover her hand with his, knowing how she felt since that’d been him nearly eighteen Years ago.

Even though she flinched slightly at the gentle touch, she finally took another deep breath to answer the question she’d been asked. In all Honesty, she didn’t have a clue where she was gonna End up, what she’d do for money, food, or housing once she got there–anything, really. All she knew was that she needed to get outta North Carolina, or her greedy, tyrant mother was gonna literally drive her insane. So once she’d saved up enough money to hit the road, she’d put in her two-week notice at work, quit her job, and packed up all her belongings.

The bassist hummed thoughtfully as he reached up to stroke the slight beard he’d started growing recently, now lost in Thought. Part of him didn’t wanna let this young woman drift around aimlessly like a Dandelion seed carried on the Wind. Another part of him almost thought it was better to just let her go, knowing she could be as much a threat to him as he could be to her. In the End, no pun on his band’s song Intended, Ashley gave into the side of himself that wanted to help her however he could.

“Well, I’ll tell ya what,” he said.

Aerin merely sat quietly, a brow cocked to show her piqued Curiosity.

“I don’t live very far from here,” the bassist told her. “Too many empty bedrooms for just one guy–and one who’s single and childless, at that.”

“Part of me ain’t sure I like where this is going,” she chuckled.

“Well, that part better start liking it,” Ashley laughed. “I’m not very generous to most people unless I have to be.”

“All right, so what am I about to be told?” the young woman asked.

“Having been where you’re at myself, I don’t like the Thought of ya living outta your car,” he Began. “That said, since I’ve plenty of extra room and kinda don’t like being by myself more often than not, I’ve a room ya can have–if ya want it, that is.”

Aerin couldn’t help her jaw dropping in utter shock at his words.

“If not–well, then, it was nice meeting ya, ’cuz I doubt we’ll ever see each other again,” the bassist continued.

“You’d seriously let a perfect stranger move in with ya, just ’cuz they were living in their car?” she asked, still processing what he’d told her.

“Don’t ask me why, but I get the feeling you’re not gonna hurt me,” Ashley told her. “Well, not when it comes to something like trying to kill me in my sleep, that is.”

“Dude, I might sleep with a knife under my pillow–when I’m actually in a bed, anywhore–but it’s for my own Protection, not ’cuz I’ma psychopathic axe murderer!” the young woman laughed.

He couldn’t help another laugh of his own, grinning at how she’d Changed the way she said _anyway_ from how most people said it. That right there told him that she was just far enough left of Center that they’d most likely get along just fine, especially since she appeared to be at least a Beginner musician. While he might get along with just about everyone he met, he seemed to get along with other musicians and those into various Arts and sports than anyone else.

After thinking it over and deciding she prolly couldn’t get much better than this, Aerin agreed to at least staying with him for a week. She could generally tell if she was gonna get along with someone well enough for such an arrangement to work out in such a short period of Time. If they didn’t still get along by the following week, chances were that they never would, and they’d best part ways.

Glad to hear her agreeing to his offer, insane though it’d no doubt sound to folks like his band mates, the bassist took another sip of his coffee. He was nothing, if not a man of his word, so even though he really didn’t wanna, he was gonna keep his End of the bargain and give her the inside scoop that she’d asked for in Return for telling her story. Ashley just had to take care to keep his volume down, ’cuz a lotta what he was about to say wasn’t public Knowledge, and none of the band wanted it to become such till they were ready.

“Ya don’t have to tell me anything here,” the young woman told him. “Since I’ma be living with ya for at least a week, we can wait till we’re at your place for that.”

“Our place now,” he corrected her with a chuckle. “But yeah, it might be better to do that–for a few different reasons.”

“Then let’s head on over there,” Aerin said. “I’m too curious to wait for long, and besides, that nap I caught a couple hours ago ain’t gonna last me very long.”

“Lemme pull my car around to where yours is at so you’ll know what you’re following,” he said. Rising from his seat, he tossed his cup in a nearby trash can. “It’ll be easier that way, compared to trying to tell ya what to look for.”

“Sounds good to me,” she agreed with a nod. “At least I’ll known for sure that I’ve the right car in my sights.”

“Ain’t that the Truth?” the bassist laughed.

Heading to her car once again, Aerin couldn’t help but wonder just what she’d gotten herself into by agreeing to this. She didn’t know what kinda man he was, short of anything released by the media–which might not be as true as she’d like to believe. Over the few Years she’d been a fan of his band, she’d heard everything from him being a shy gentleman to him being a wild, womanizing Playboy. It was true that those could be two different sides of his personality, based on when he was sober or drunk, but it could also be true that only one of those was his true personality.

Deciding that it wasn’t worth giving herself a headache over, she waited patiently for him to pull into the parking spot beside her. Part of her wasn’t surprised to see a black Dodge Charger moments later, the heavily-tinted passenger window rolling down to reveal Ashley’s face. She nodded as he yelled loud enough to make sure she heard him to just follow him, and he’d have them home in no Time.

Life was about to Change for both of them pretty drastically, and the young woman couldn’t even Begin to imagine exactly how. All she could do was put her car in gear to back outta her spot, leaving plenty of room for him to back out in front of her, and follow him home. Hopefully, he wasn’t too much different than what she’d read online, and this crazy plan of moving in with him so she wouldn’t have to live outta her car worked out.


	3. Two

Pulling up outside the brick house that was far from modest in her opinion, Aerin couldn’t help but be impressed, despite the ritzy neighborhood it was in. The grounds were obviously well-kept, whether it was by a landscaping crew that overcharged him or Ashley, himself. She particularly liked the fact that the driveway pretty much wrapped around the front of the house and essentially cut them off from the road, even if that didn’t give them much of a front yard.

The bassist waved her over closer to his car once he’d parked and gotten out, leafing through his keys as he waited for her. He told her before she rolled her window up that he was gonna go unlock the door, then he’d be back to help her with her stuff. Nodding, she rolled up said window before she killed the motor and got out, still a bit stiff from how long she’d been driving earlier that Day.

Grabbing her guitar cases, she put a gig bag on each shoulder and grabbed the last in a firm grip to ensure she wouldn’t drop it. If there was one thing she wasn’t letting this man put his hands on, even if he was being helpful, it was her instruments. While she didn’t think he’d break them, she didn’t trust anyone else with her gear–and with good reason, since the guitars’d belonged to her pappaw prior to his Death, and her bass was the last thing he’d bought for her before then. Sure, she didn’t want anything happening to her amps any more than she wanted her instruments to befall that Fate, but they didn’t mean quite as much to her.

Ashley grabbed the amps he saw once he got back down to her car, noting that one was actually a bass amp. He kinda wondered if that meant she was a bassist in her own right as he led her back up to the front door, which he’d left open since he’d known they’d have their hands full. In the grand scheme of things, he wasn’t too sure it mattered since he’d a feeling they’d get along just fine, and that this next week’d prove it to her.

“Eh, a lil too bright and Airy for my taste, believe it or not,” she said as she walked in. “Gotta love that it’s relatively Spacious, though, no matter the Color scheme.”

“I left pretty much everything the way it was when I moved in,” the bassist chuckled. “It all seemed in decent shape, and I kinda like the Light-and-Dark contrast almost everywhere.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard thatcha once had an apartment or something that you’d done entirely in black-and-white,” Aerin laughed.

“Guilty as charged,” he chuckled. “I can’t help liking the clean-cut look of that style.”

_“Le gasp_ –the bad boy likes clean-cut!” the young woman teased him playfully.

“Well, c’mon–let’s get your stuff to one of the bedrooms since you’ve your pick of the two that’re actually free,” Ashley told her.

She nodded and followed him, liking the way the foyer opened up to the living area, which she supposed a lotta folks’d call the great room. There was an archway to the right that led to the eat-in dining nook, and she caught a glimpse of the kitchen as she peeked through it. ’Cuz of the house’s layout, she couldn’t be too sure what was on the other side of the kitchen till she’d a chance to explore, but she suspected it might be a butler’s pantry or laundry room.

Following Ashley to the left, she was led through the formal dining room and a smaller living area that she’d have to dub a den. Both were Spacious enough for a single guy who lived alone, but she wouldn’t say they were big enough for a Future family. Well, that’s if he ever decided he wanted to start one, considering he might be one of those guys who never wanted to marry and have kids.

One of the bedrooms the young woman took a look at appeared to have its own set of built-ins, which made her eyes Light up. She’d quite a few books ranging from erotica novels to autobiographies and books that dealt with her chosen Spirituality. Those built-ins’d be quite useful for storing all those books, not to mention take up less Space that crowding her room with store-bought bookshelves–which she couldn’t afford right now, anywhore. The other bedroom was just simple, big enough for either a Queen or two Twin beds with flat walls and its own bathroom.

“I think I’ma have to go with the one that’s got the built-ins,” Aerin said, heading into it.

“Got a lotta shit to store?” the bassist chuckled, following her with her amps.

“Tons of books, ’cuz I’ll admit that I’m quite the bookworm when I wanna be, various trinkets and other shit I can use as décor,” she chuckled.

“Then they’ll definitely come in handy, especially if ya don’t have very much money right now,” Ashley said.

“That’s exactly what I was thinking since I’m trying to watch my spending and conserve what lil cash I’ve still got,” the young woman agreed.

“Well, let’s go get your clothes and whatever else’s in your car,” he told her. “It’s gonna be Dark out in a couple hours, and it’ll be easier to get the unloading done before then.”

Nodding her agreement, she carefully laid the gig bags across the bed that was in the room so they were flat and on their backs. The last, handmade wooden case she settled in the floor, also making sure it was on its back so it wouldn’t fall over. He’d never seen anyone but a serious musician do that before, so maybe he’d been mistaken about her being a Beginner, after all.

It didn’t take the pair long to get the rest of her belongings into her new bedroom, and by then, they both decided they were hungry. Since he actually loved to cook and was damn good at it, Ashley headed for the kitchen with a few ideas in mind. He could be a total Health-nut sometimes, but he was actually kinda in the mood for something more along the lines of Comfort food–well, within reason since he didn’t particularly want a heart attack in a bowl or on a plate, that is.

“So, what’s that inside scoop we both agreed might be better saved for here at the house?” Aerin asked curiously, looking out the windowed doors that led to the back deck as he got to work.

“Well, a lotta it’s personal–and I’d like it to stay that way till I’m ready to say anything publicly,” the bassist answered.

“Huh–what?” she asked, turning to look at him with a smirk.

“Did ya not hear what I said?” Ashley countered with a slight frown.

“Inside joke, Ashley,” the young woman laughed. “That was mine and my mom’s way of saying _I know nothin’_ before I left home.”

“Oh, I gotcha,” he chuckled, nodding as he realized what she’d meant.

“So, yeah–that basically means that I’ma act like I never heard any of what’s about to come outta your mouth,” Aerin reiterated.

“Good, ’cuz like I said–it’s pretty personal to me,” the bassist told her. “A lotta it involves my own Health, not to mention my family.”

Now her Curiosity was really piqued, and she turned away from the back door so she could head into the kitchen to join him. She listened Intently, only interrupting him to ask a question when something really didn’t make sense, as he explained what he meant. That explanation was quite the doozy, and it was no Wonder he hadn’t been open about it with the band’s fan base, if she were honest.

Ashley’d not only been stalked by a fan who was more of a delusional psychopath than she’d ever Dream of being, but he’d lost two people who meant the World to him and then some. His grama’d gotten really sick, and while they’d known she wasn’t much longer for this World, her Death’d still hit him pretty hard. She was practically his mother from the Time his parents died as a young child till the Day she moved on from this plane, herself. Losing her was almost like losing a part of his Soul, but things only got worse from there–bad enough that he’d nearly lost his mind.

Faced with his first holiday Season without his wife, the bassist’s grampa hadn’t been able to cope nearly as well as they’d thought he would. On the first Christmas Day after the elderly woman’s passing, he’d put a gun to his own head and pulled the trigger. What was even worse–it was Ashley who’d found his grampa’s corpse when he’d arrived for their annual Christmas gathering and found that he’d to let himself in, rather than his grampa waiting to let him in.

“Oh, Ashley,” Aerin breathed, moving to hug him when he choked up to the point that he couldn’t even speak.

Surprised by the action, it took him a few moments to Return the hug, his head bowing so he could bury his face in her hair.

“I’m honestly not too sure what to say, other than it’ll eventually get better,” the young woman told him. “I know you’re not gonna believe me, but the pain’ll slowly fade to a dull ache, even though it’ll never completely go away.”

“Ya say that like ya already know from personal experience,” Ashley managed to say.

“’Cuz sadly, I do–a lot better than you’d think at first glance,” she told him.

Unsure of what to say now himself, he just lifted his head to cock a brow down at her.

“My own pappaw–hillbilly term for _grampa,_ by the way–was like my daddy growing up, too,” she explained. “When he died two Days after my birthday in 2014–well, saying it hit me like a barrel of bricks between the eyes is an understatement.”

“Oh, my God,” the bassist breathed, his eyes widening.

“Yeah, that’s the very reason I can’t listen to the BVB song _Lost it All_ anymore,” Aerin chuckled. “That was the song I was singing along to as they took his corpse outta the house that Night, ’cuz that was pretty much exactly how I felt.”

“I repeat, oh, my God,” he said with a wince.

“And what’s worse–I was pretty much his live-in caretaker for the last couple Years of his Life, the last Year especially.” The young woman took a deep breath, her breasts pressing against him more, and sighed heavily. “I watched my pappaw pretty much sit in his recliner and slowly suffocate to Death while drowning in his own toxins.”

“Dare I ask what was wrong with him?” Ashley asked, unsure if he really wanted to know.

“Emphysema and COPD from five decades of smoking, congestive heart failure, diabetes, and End-stage renal failure as a result the diabetes–which was brought on by poor Lifestyle choices,” she answered.

“Damn, he really had it bad–just like my gram did,” the bassist winced.

Nodding, Aerin told him how she’d have to stop and stare at him for a few moments every Time he’d fall asleep in his recliner. Sometimes, it was hard to tell if he was still breathing or not, and seeing him slumped with his head on his chest always terrified her. Once she saw his chest rise and fall a few Times, she’d carry on with whatever she’d been doing, but she still worried about him. There’d been plenty of Times when she’d do that, and she’d be so overcome with the desire to be an Angel of Mercy that only not wanting to serve the jail Time after she killed him’d stop her from going to get his rifle or shotgun.

Ashley now realized that, even if the rest of his band–well, aside from Jake since he’d lost his actual mom a couple Years ago–didn’t get it, this young woman did. She got exactly how he felt, more so than his band mates ever could, just ’cuz–even though it was only by half–she’d already gone through the exact same thing. Losing the man who’d practically been her daddy couldn’t have been any easier for her than it was for him, and she could easily sympathize with him.

Taking a deep breath, he went on to explain that–as a result of his grampa taking his own Life–he’d nearly followed in his footsteps on more than one occasion. He came from a decently long line of suicidal men, and when combined with being stalked, he just wasn’t sure that living was worth it anymore. He’d managed to talk himself outta doing something so stupid, though, and started getting treatment for his problems. Unfortunately, while it’d helped his mental state quite a bit, there were problems within his band that it seemed nothing could fix.

Due to his Control-freak Nature, Andy’d been cutting him outta the Creative process with the songwriting more and more. It was getting to the point that he’d go into the studio, be taught a part by Jake, and then record it before coming home to practice it for the accompanying tour. Even though it was the band baby’s Dream, he hadn’t exactly wanted to do a _Wretched and Divine_ reboot, as it were.

“Yeah, that’s one of the reasons why I don’t really listen to BVB anymore,” Aerin admitted. “It’s hard for me to listen to your Music when the main thing I hear is Andy’s voice when I know what a narcissistic tyrant he is.”

“Oh, ya don’t even know the half of it,” the bassist laughed. “If ya think he’s bad online, he’s even worse in person.”

“Remind me not to ever say I wanna meet him any more than I’d wanna meet Bret Michaels,” she said dryly.

“You’re talking about the frontman of Poison, right?” Ashley asked.

“Yeah, ’cuz I dunno of any other Bret Michaels on the Planet,” the young woman answered with a chuckle.

“Hey, I gotta make sure–after all, I dunno much aboutcha,” he laughed.

“Well, the easiest way to put me in a nutshell,” Aerin started with a grin. “I’m so far left of Center most of the Time, two of your quotes might as well’ve been based on me.”

“Oh–and what’re those quotes?” the bassist asked curiously.

_“Being called weird’s like being called limited editon_ – _it means you’re something that people don’t see very often_ and _Normal_ – _what’s normal? A setting on a washing machine, and nobody wantsta be that,”_ she answered, still grinning.

Ashley couldn’t help but laugh, thinking that she just might be right about what she’d said before.

“Not only am I pretty far left of Center, but I’m Pagan and pretty sure I shoulda been born in the eighties,” the young woman continued. “Well, more like the seventies, at the latest, so I could grow up through the eighties like my mom did.”

“Eh, I don’t really remember that much of it,” he admitted. “I wasn’t born till ’84, so I wasn’t really paying attention to the World till around when ya were born, yourself.”

Aerin couldn’t help but laugh as he finally started plating the Italian masterpiece he’d been working on the whole Time they were talking after their hug. If things kept going like they currently were, she could easily see herself staying with him for more than a week. What kinda turn things’d take from there, she wasn’t so sure of, but she knew one thing–they wouldn’t take a Romantic turn, for sure.

Once they’d eaten dinner and restored the kitchen to rights, both decided to head off and start their Nightly bedtime routine. The bassist said he was prolly gonna be up early to go over some design ideas for his clothing line, which he hadn’t really worked on in the last few Years, and maybe some possible Music to release as a solo artist. She told him he prolly shouldn’t expect her to be up before Noon, ’cuz she hadn’t gotten a whole lotta sleep the past few Days after she’d left her mom’s house since she’d spent most of her Time driving.

Bidding his new roommate a good Night, Ashley headed through the area he’d call a butler’s pantry to the master suite, which was on the opposite side of the house. He could see himself living with this girl for quite a while to come as much as she could, even if he was permanently friend-zoned. She was definitely attractive, but not what he’d usually call _his type_ –and besides, she didn’t seem to be interested in him in a Romantic sense.

In her own new bedroom across the house, the young woman dug out what she Intended to wear to bed before heading into the en suite bathroom. She knew it’d likely take her a while to get to sleep unless her exhaustion finally caught up with her enough to knock her out almost immediately. She’d what she called _Spacial insomnia,_ meaning that it was hard for her to fall asleep in new, unfamiliar surroundings unless she was drop-dead exhausted. Even still, part of her couldn’t wait to see what the next week’d bring, ’cuz now she hoped more than ever that the bassist’s Generosity worked out for them both, given that she now didn’t wanna leave.


	4. Three

The next few months passed by quicker than it seemed, and it was safe to say that Aerin and Ashley–whom she now called by his nickname of Ash–were very compatible as roommates. Once she’d moved into his home with him, she hadn’t ever moved out, nor had he made her get a job since she more than earned her keep around the house.

Considering how busy he normally was with his Music–mostly for release as a solo artist–his clothing line, and his mental Health, there was a lotta shit he’d to slack on. He was beyond grateful that, while it was a bit sub-par compared to his norm, she kept up on the house work and even took care of the yard work, too. In fact, it was at her insistence that he canceled the service of his landscaping crew that he’d been paying for the past few Years ever since he moved to Nashville. Gone were the exorbitant fees he’d been paying in favor of letting her have at his yard since she swore it was actually relaxing for her.

By the Time October rolled around, though, the bassist’d been forced to come to a decision he’d never wanted to have to make. Things weren’t getting any better with his band, particularly Andy–who was always stuck up his wife’s ass, if he were honest–but rather getting even worse. Nobody seemed to be taking him seriously when he said that he really needed to focus on himself when it came to his mental and Emotional Health, and he got cut outta the Creative process even more.

Fed up with his band’s lack of support when they professed to be some of his best friends, Ashley’d decided it was better for him to part ways with them. While she’d been upset with his decision, his young roommate could completely understand why he’d made it, and he hoped the rest of the fan base was just as understanding. He needed to move on before this band drove him insane, rather than giving him the Creative outlet it’d once given him back when he’d joined it. There was apparently no way to bridge the rift between them, and he was done throwing Time and Energy into it.

“I still Wish ya weren’t gonna do this,” Aerin sighed the afternoon of the band’s announcement about a week before Thanksgiving. “I get why, but I still don’t have to like it.”

“I know, sugar,” he said, using the pet name he’d taken to calling her as their friendship’d blossomed.

“I think the reason why it’s hitting me so hard is ’cuz, next to Mötley and Poison, BVB was one of my favorite bands,” the young woman admitted.

“Kinda like Mötley’s always been one of my favorites,” Ash agreed.

“Yeah, and after that stunt they pulled with their _cessation of touring_ contract a few Years ago, I didn’t wanna see another one of my favorite bands get ripped to shreds,” the young woman admitted.

“That’s just the Nature of the beast, unfortunately,” he told her, taking his turn to sigh. “It happens to just about every band that ever forms at some point, it seems.”

“Yeah, ’cuz like Bobby Dall once said, it’s kinda like having three other wives–four, in your case,” Aerin chuckled.

“For fuckin’ sure,” he laughed. “God, sometimes I wondered if I really _had_ married those four!”

“Who knows, though? Maybe one Day, you’ll reunite with ’em like Vince did with Mötley, and CC did with Poison,” the young woman said.

“For the moment, I doubt that’ll ever happen, but who knows?” Ash chuckled. “The Future’s never set in Stone.”

Nodding her agreement, she went back to whatever she’d been typing on her laptop, which was prolly another one of the fan-fictions she’d admitted to writing. The bassist’d to say that–after reading a few of her works–she was certainly a talented writer, even if some of what she wrote was more than a lil disturbing to him. He’d particularly enjoyed a story she’d entitled _Hanging by a Moment,_ and not just ’cuz it’d involved himself as a main character.

Since she was clearly being hit with a Lightning bolt of Inspiration, he decided to get back to work on the doodle that might become a piece for his clothing line. He didn’t normally draw things that could only be described as Victorian, or maybe steampunk, but that’s what he’d found himself drawing on a female figure. It was looking pretty good so far, if he did say so himself, but he often doubted what he drew till he got at least three positive feedbacks. That was part of growing up a shy lil boy who’d to force himself outta his shell, though, and he doubted it was a habit he’d ever break.

* * *

Another couple weeks passed by, and Ash Returned home from the office he’d set up across town to use for his clothing line to find his roommate practically possessed. The young woman was dancing around the house like a nut as she worked on a few household chores, earbuds in her ears. He wasn’t too sure exactly what she was listening to, as her tastes could Change from one Day to the next, but she’d it up loud enough for him to hear the bass from across the room.

When she turned to go dump the dust pan she’d been sweeping a pile of dirt into and noticed him, Aerin reached up to pause her Music and pull out said earbuds. She flushed slightly with embarrassment, which made him chuckle at how cute she looked–which she’d deny in a heartbeat, if he dared call her out on it.

“What’s gotcha so happy today?” the bassist asked curiously.

“Ya haven’t heard?” she countered, cocking a brow at him.

“Apparently not,” Ash answered, shaking his head. “Must be big, whatever it is, if it’s gotcha dancing around the house like a woman possessed, though.”

“Mötley supposedly blew up that damned contract!” she said, practically squealing. She couldn’t help jumping up and down, which damn near sent her breasts into her eye sockets.

“Whoa there, sugar,” he laughed. “Calm down before ya give yourself double black eyes.”

“I can’t help it!” Aerin said, still grinning. “I thought I’d never get a chance to see Mötley live after they broke the news about that contract, and the news gets even better!”

“Oh, really?” the bassist asked, cocking a brow.

_“If_ what Eddie Trunk said is actually true–and I know that’s a mighty big _if_ at this point–rumor has it that they’re gonna head out on tour with Poison and Def Leppard next Year!” she told him.

“Well, hot day-um,” Ash laughed. “That’ll make for a killer show!”

“Ya got that right, dude!” the young woman laughed. “A killer show that I’d kill a puppy to go see!”

“No, not a puppy!” he cried in mock anguish, neither of them able to help a round of gut-splitting laughter.

The bassist could certainly see why his roommate’d gotten so excited now, ’cuz he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t excited, himself. It was just the kinda news any joint Black Veil Brides and Mötley Crüe fan needed after the former band’s announcement the previous week. Poison and Def Leppard being the bands rumored to join the heavy metal monster definitely only made the news even more exciting for anyone who’d heard it so far.

Aerin was practically vibrating with excitement like she’d drank way too much coffee that Day, but he could understand why. Over the past few months, she’d told him why Mötley and Poison were two of her favorite bands as they’d gotten to know each other better. It wasn’t simply ’cuz she liked their Music or their image, but for things that took quite a bit of digging to find out.

Like Nikki Sixx, she’d a rough childhood after being abandoned by her father, especially since her mother might as well’ve abandoned her, too. That was why her pappaw’d been like her daddy growing up, which she’d been too young, naïve, and stupid to truly realize till it was too late. However, unlike the much more sick and twisted bassist, she _hadn’t_ turned to drugs and alcohol to help her cope with that shitty childhood. Instead, she’d taken more or less the same route as Andy with his high school Years, pouring her turmoil and pain into a lotta the stories she wrote. It didn’t matter if they were fan-fiction or a truly original work–writing was often cathartic for her, which was why she did a lotta it.

But on the flip-side, if a lotta what the young woman’d read about Bobby Dall was true, she’d a lot in common with him, too. She’d read somewhere that his biological father hadn’t been a part of his Life as a child any more than her own’d been a part of hers. No doubt that’d caused a lotta pain that’d led to him being a true alcoholic back in the Day, which’d nearly cost him dearly. And if there was one thing she could highly Respect, it was his and Nikki’s most likely reasons for getting clean eventually.

“I mean, they were both daddies that seemed pretty determined _not_ to ultimately do what their dads’d done to them,” she said.

“Which’s definitely something to Respect in just about anyone,” Ash agreed with a nod.

“But when ya think about how much pressure they were no doubt under at the height of their Success–it’s even more respectable than you’d think at first,” the young woman continued.

“Kinda like me being a heavy drinker’s more understandable, now that I’ve ripped my heart out for the World to see,” he chuckled.

“Well, I wouldn’t necessarily say you’ve ripped your heart out, _per sé,”_ Aerin laughed. “I damn well don’t see a gaping hole in your chest.”

“I meant that figuratively, not literally!” the bassist said, joining her laughter.

“Gotcha to laugh, though, didn’t it?” she asked with a cheeky grin.

“Ya wise-ass, you,” Ash responded with a grin of his own.

“But still, I’d kill to go see whatever show’s closest to us once that tour kicks off,” the young woman said. “I wouldn’t even care if I got backstage passes, honestly–that’d just be a fuckin’ plus. I just wanna see Mötley before they finally sign another one of those contracts and never blow it up, not to mention see Poison live and have better memories of it later on.”

“Whaddya mean by having better memories of seeing Poison live?” he asked curiously.

Aerin explained how her mom’d taken her to see a few different concerts when she was younger, as in before she turned fifteen. The first was John Mellencamp when she was four, which she vaguely remembered, the next being KISS when she was six–which she didn’t remember at all. Even she was confounded as to how she could remember going to see John Mellencamp at such a young age, but not remember seeing rock Gods like KISS when she was a couple Years older.

The bassist couldn’t help laughing at that, ’cuz he definitely thought it was amusing not to remember seeing a killer show like that. Once they’d stopped laughing at the absurdity, she picked up her tale with going to see Poison around the age of ten. Her mom’d taken her to see them at the Greensboro Coliseum, which was the closest show to where they lived at the Time. They’d backstage passes to meet at least Bret that Night, and she’d been excited like just about any other kid that age woulda been. However, that’s where the good Time Ended, and she was left with pretty rotten memories that she still hadn’t been able to forget seventeen or so Years later.

Ash listened as she told him that she and her mom’d sat backstage for what her mom claimed was close to three and a-half hours, but she swore was only about two. She admitted her memory was a bit skewed due to how young she’d been at the Time, but at least she remembered they’d waited for longer than an hour.

Expecting to eventually get to meet Bret, she and every other fan with backstage passes that Night’d been pretty disappointed and upset when a roadie’d come out to say that he wasn’t feeling good and was calling it an early Night. Looking back on it, while she realized that his diabetes coulda been acting up and he really hadn’t felt good, the young woman thought that’d just been excuse. She thought he’d really found whatever groupie he’d wanted that Night and chosen to blow off the rest of the fans that’d been waiting for him as patiently as they could.

“Yikes,” he winced, cringing at the Thought. “Yeah, I can see why you’re so excited now.”

“If I can manage to get to whatever show’s the closest to here, ya can bet your left nut that I’m gonna,” Aerin swore.

“Well, when do the tickets go on sale?” the bassist asked.

“They haven’t said yet, ’cuz they haven’t even officially announced a tour,” she answered. “Who knows when they’ll even announce a tour, let alone when tickets’re gonna go on sale?”

“True enough,” Ash agreed with a nod. “It’ll prolly be a week or two, if it takes them as long as it usually took Black Veil Brides once we’d nailed down all the dates and venues.”

“That’s _if_ there’s even a tour at all,” the young woman reminded him. “This might all just be a big hoax, and even if Mötley goes on tour again, it might not be with Poison and Def Leppard.”

Ash nodded as he got her point, but the wheels in his head were already turning hard and fast as he thought about what she’d told him. He was gonna be keeping an eye and ear out for anything about a tour, especially one for Poison, ’cuz he fully Intended to get tickets as early as possible. She loved both the bands she’d named specifically so much that, even if they toured separately, he wanted to make sure she saw them live at least once that she’d clearly remember.

He made sure to keep his mouth shut so she wouldn’t suspect what he was already up to, knowing she’d try to talk him outta it at first. She’d made no bones about not exactly liking being his sugar baby at best, his charity case at worst, and unless he told her he was doing it as a birthday present or something, she’d fight him on it every step of the way.


	5. Four

It took about another week after word hit the rumor mill for anything definitive to be announced, and Ash kept his ears peeled the whole Time. Eventually, word started making the rounds that–at a press conference with SiriusXM–Mötley Crüe, Poison, and Def Leppard had finally released tour dates for a pretty big stadium tour next Year. They were gonna be joined by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, as well, which neither he, nor his roommate could care less about seeing any more than they could care less about seeing Def Leppard.

When he found out that pre-sales were gonna start specifically for Citi cardholders on December tenth around Noon, he couldn’t help checking his wallet. The bassist nearly hooted in excitement when he found that he was one of those lucky enough to be able to partake in the pre-sale, and that that particular credit card hadn’t expired on him yet.

As soon as he heard the news, he was grateful that he was on his lunch break in his office for Ashley Purdy Fashion, Inc. Even though he was the boss around here, he still tried to act like any other employee as much as he could. He never wanted anyone who worked for him to say he was a tyrant of a boss whose fame and fortune’d gone to his head way too much. If that meant he’d to do personal things on his lunch break like they did, he could more than live with that happily.

Looking through the list of posted dates, he saw that there were two relatively close to Nashville, as far as he was concerned. The first was on July eleventh in Charlotte, but he nixed that one pretty quickly ’cuz Aerin’d told him she never wanted to set foot in her home State again. The next closest was in Atlanta, Georgia on August ninth, seeing as how he didn’t particularly wanna go to Texas or Pennsylvania just for a concert. All the other dates listed had the tour making stops mostly in the Northeast and Upper Midwest with only three spanning from Denver, Colorado to where they were Ending it in Los Angeles on September fifth.

“She can try to kick my ass for this later, but we’re going to that Atlanta show, come Hell or high Water,” he muttered under his breath.

“What was that, boss?”

Looking up, Ash saw one of his makeup artists, Jackie, standing in his office doorway with her hand raised like she’d been about to knock on the open door. “Oh, nothing, Jackie–just talking to myself,” he chuckled.

“Now, we can’t have ya going crazy and talking to yourself, boss,” the makeup artist laughed.

“It was more of a mental note for something,” he swore as she walked around his desk to see what he was looking at on his computer screen.

“Mötley Crüe tour dates?” Jackie asked, whistling. “Damn, I hadn’t even heard about this.”

“’Cuz it literally just got posted,” the bassist answered with a laugh. “I’ve been keeping my eyes and ears peeled since my roommate mentioned something that was flying around the rumor mill last week.”

“Oh, really?” she asked, cocking a brow. “And how’s Aerin doing, by the way?”

“She’s doing pretty good–she’s actually a big help with getting and keeping my head on straight, among other things,” he answered. “But yeah, she told me when I got home one Day last week that rumor had it Mötley Crüe blew up their _cessation of touring_ contract–literally.”

“Well, shit,” the makeup artist said, her eyes widening. “When do tickets go on sale?”

“Says here that pre-sales for Citi cardholders start on December tenth around Noon till the twelfth at ten PM, local Time,” Ash read, his attention back on his computer screen. “General sales start on December thirteenth at ten _AM,_ local Time.”

“I think I’ma have to try to get tickets to one of the shows before they’re gone,” she said. “I’ma have to wait till the thirteenth, though, since I don’t have a credit card with Citi.”

“I could always buy your ticket for ya, and ya either pay me back or I just dock it outta your next paycheck,” the bassist offered.

“No need for that, boss,” she laughed. “It’s greatly appreciated, though.”

He told her that was fine, if that was what she really wanted, but to let him know if she Changed her mind, ’cuz the offer was still open. Afterward, he locked his computer so no one else’d be able to use it while his back was turned so they could get back to work. Once those tickets went on sale the following Monday, Ash was gonna make sure he bought two of them. And not only that, but he was gonna make sure he bought the VIP packages so they’d backstage passes on the Night the tour stopped in Atlanta.

Just as he’d sworn to himself he was gonna do, Ash made sure he took his lunch break the following Monday so he’d be free when those tickets went on sale. He was determined to make sure his young roommate got to see her favorite bands live, and at this point, he’d almost willingly sacrifice his left nut to make it happen. She deserved to see Mötley before they really did quit touring for good, and to have better memories of getting to see Poison.

With their tickets for the August ninth show at the SunTrust Park pre-ordered, the bassist was able to eat his lunch with a smile on his face. Aerin was bound to wanna smack him at first, but he didn’t care–she’d be the first to admit that it was his money, and she couldn’t stop him from spending it on whatever he wanted to. Sure, she might be a bit miffed at first, ’cuz it’d no doubt make her feel like she owed him and wouldn’t be able to pay him back. But once she got over that part, she’d be too damn excited about getting to go–and backstage, at that–to wanna do him harm.

“Hey there, sugar,” he said, greeting her as he always did when he got home later that Eve.

“Hey, Ash!” the young woman responded, waving to him from where she was curled up on the couch.

“Been lazing around for once?” Ash asked with a chuckle.

“Hip’s been hurting me today, and the Aleve hasn’t done much good for once,” she answered, nodding.

“Ouch,” the bassist winced. “I Wish there was something I could do for that.”

“Unfortunately, I don’t think anything but a hip replacement’s gonna help me at this point,” Aerin sighed.

“I doubt most doctors’d do such a thing for a twenty-seven-Year-old unless it’s truly necessary,” he told her.

“Not to mention that I’m broke and don’t have Health insurance,” the young woman grumbled.

“Well, I’ve something that I think’ll cheer ya up, pain or no,” Ash told her, unable to help a shit-eating grin.

“Oh–and what’s that?” she asked, cocking her head like a curious puppy.

“Kill me for it later, if that’s whatcha want–but you’re gonna see Mötley and Poison next August!” the bassist answered.

Aerin’s jaw dropped in shock as she processed his words, but her eyes lit up in utter glee seconds later. She practically launched herself across the couch at him, despite her hip supposedly acting up again, and damn near wrung his neck with the hug she gave him. He couldn’t help laughing as he caught her against his chest, barely saving himself from hitting the floor and taking her down with him as he Returned the hug.

The young woman still told him he didn’t have to buy those tickets, ’cuz now she felt indebted to him and like she’d to work even harder around the house. Waving off her concern, Ash told her to just consider it a birthday present for next Year, if she really felt that bad. He wouldn’t have spent the money, if he hadn’t wanted to make her Day by being able to come home and tell her this.

For the rest of the Night, she seemed to be dancing around on Cloud Nine and practically vibrating like she’d been the Day she’d first heard the rumor about a tour. The bassist couldn’t help laughing–or at least chuckling–at nearly every turn, which just made her stick her tongue out at him like a petulant child. At least she was happy and letting a grin split her face almost as much as he was, himself–that was what mattered to him the most. She was one of his best friends, after all, and whether he ever managed to snag her as a girlfriend or not, he wanted to see her happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, I know, but my Intent's to make the next one longer–as long as my hands can handle it! LOL! We're gonna be getting into some good shit, as long as my brain'll continue to function decently till about 0700 or 0730 since I've gotta stay up till then so I can get on schedule for the new job I'm starting tomorrow Night!  
> ~Angel


	6. Five

_Atlanta, Georgia_

_August, 2020_

Nearly a Year’d passed since Ash’d bought those tickets to go see Mötley and Poison on their stadium tour during the Summer of 2020. Finally, the Day of the show was upon them, and he couldn’t deny being excited, even after a flight down to Atlanta. Honestly, he was just glad to see his young roommate so happy that she was practically bouncing in her seat on the plane, rather than freakin’ out due to her professed near-phobia of heights.

At the venue where they were gonna see the four bands listed on the tour roster, he was glad that those with the VIP packages were let in early. He knew that sometimes, the meet-and-greets were done before the show, other Times they were done afterward. Part of him wondered which way it was gonna go tonight, but he didn’t really care either way since he was Intent on having a good Time.

Unfortunately for them, the meet-and-greet wasn’t gonna be till after the show, but that was okay, even though they’d no doubt have to wait for the bands to shower after their performances. At least Aerin’d something to look forward to, considering she didn’t really care about meeting Bret this Time around like she had when she was younger. In fact, if he’d to pick a band member she seemed the most excited about meeting, he’d have to say it was Nikki and Bobby since she couldn’t care less about Def Leppard or Joan Jett’s band.

“I don’t even think I need to ask if you’re excited or not,” the bassist laughed.

“No way, dude!” she said, grinning as she narrowly stopped herself from squealing. “This is literally a Dream come true for me!”

“Well, let’s go get any drinks and merch we’re gonna get before the first band goes on,” Ash told her. “It’ll be easier than fighting the rest of the crowd once general admin gets let in.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” the young woman agreed. “Adding bathroom breaks to that list’d prolly be a good idea, too.”

“We’re gonna be in a section with private bathrooms,” he chuckled. “It’ll be easier for us to go between bands than it’ll be for everyone else.”

“Hey, can’t blame me for not knowing this shit since I’ve only been to concerts as part of the general admin crowd!” Aerin laughed.

The bassist joined her laughter as they headed off to take care of those things, definitely unable to say anything about her ignorance in that department. She’d told him before that she’d always been a part of the general admin crowd, that the one Poison show she’d gone to in the Past was the only one she’d been lucky enough to have backstage passes for. Considering how that’d turned out for her, he wasn’t surprised that was one memory from that particular Night she’d apparently blocked out.

After getting their concessions and whatever merch they both wanted, they headed off to find their seats so they could get off their feet for a bit. Ash knew how standing–not to mention jumping around–on concrete could feel after a while, but he knew she’d be feeling it harder than him by the End of the Night. ’Cuz she was so much shorter than him, the young woman’d donned what she called her _hooker boots,_ a pair of leather boots that came up to her knees and sported three, maybe four-inch heels. They were bound to kill her feet by the End of the Night, but as long as she’d a good Time, he knew the pain’d be worth it.

* * *

Backstage in his private dressing room, Poison bassist Bobby Dall was getting himself ready to storm the stage. Joan Jett and her band were supposed to be the first up, then his own band, followed by Def Leppard before this tour’s headliner took the stage. At least he’d have plenty of Time to grab a shower and relax a bit before the Insanity of the VIP meet-and-greet that’d follow Mötley’s performance, which he was thankful for.

“Hey, man.”

Looking up from getting his eyeliner on without stabbing his eye out, he saw his band’s lead guitarist, CC. “What’s up, man?” he chuckled. “Ready to head out?”

“Yeah, I’m ready whenever they give us our cues,” CC answered, nodding. “What about you?”

“Almost–just trying to get my eyeliner on straight without stabbing an eye out before I get my bandana on,” the bassist answered.

“Here, lemme see,” he told him, holding out his hand. “At least I can see to do it since I’ve my contacts in.”

“Thanks, man,” Bobby chuckled, handing over the black eyeliner pencil. “I still hate that I can’t wear contacts, even after all these Years.”

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” the guitarist chuckled. “Some people just can’t tolerate them.”

“Yeah, and I’m one of those people,” he said. “They gimme nasty headaches and irritate my eyes so that I can’t see straight for Days after I try to wear them.”

With a gentle hand under his chin, CC tilted his head back so he could see what he was doing, then made sure to be gentle about holding his eye open. The bassist made sure not to move a muscle to even talk while he was working, not wanting him to mess up and accidentally stab his eye out. If he hadn’t wanted to do that to himself, he damn sure didn’t want anyone else doing it to him, but thankfully, his friend possessed a pretty steady hand.

Once his eyeliner was on and met his approval, Bobby thanked him before stowing the pencil back in his makeup case and grabbing his glasses. He’d been the first one to admit easily fifteen Years ago that he couldn’t see six feet in front of him without them, and that he’d rather show his age by wearing them onstage than to see a massive blur the entire show. Refusing to dye his hair anymore and just let it be once he’d started going gray around the age of forty-five only added to that effect, but he liked letting his age show. It proved that he was a survivor, considering he’d made it through the eighties and survived not only getting dried out twenty-plus Years ago, but nearly forty Years with this band.

It wasn’t long afterward that he and his mostly-blonde band mates were getting wired up with their Sound packs. The bassist only took off his unbuttoned overshirt for the Sound tech to run the wire up his back, having always hated when it’d stick to his sweaty flesh. Stuck between the T-shirt he was wearing underneath and his overshirt, he didn’t have that problem, and he preferred it that way.

After they were all wired up, they awaited their cues as patiently as they could while Rikki’s tech was finishing up with getting his kit ready between bands. The old Anxiety that’d hit him before every show since he was still wet behind the ears, so to speak, hit Bobby just like it did every Time. But even though he was anxious, he was beyond excited to get out there and give the crowd a four hundred-dollar show to make the hundred-plus dollars they’d paid for their tickets worth it. That was how he felt every Time he stormed the stage, and he didn’t think that’d ever Change till he simply dropped dead.

“Good afternoon, Atlanta!” Bret yelled into his mic once they were all on the stage.

A loud roar of cheers, screams, whistles, and other noises answered him.

“Are ya guys ready to _talk dirty to me?”_ he asked, a grin splitting his face.

More of the same answered him, and he pointed to his right as he took another breath.

“Then let’s have ourselves _nothin’ but a good Time_ today!” the frontman roared. “Hit it, CC!”

With a wild, almost feral grin on his face, the guitarist ripped into their classic song from their debut album, _Talk Dirty to Me_. It’d been a fan-favorite pretty much since the Day it was released, and they all enjoyed playing it live, no matter how many Times they did it. Still, his personal favorite to play live’d have to be _Ride the Wind_ from their third album, _Flesh and Blood,_ although he couldn’t say why.

Bobby made sure to look out at the crowd as much as down at the neck of his bass when necessary, a grin splitting his face the entire Time. There was nothing like the rush he got from getting out there and playing his heart out–even sex couldn’t compare to it, as far as he was concerned. However, at one point when they were about to launch into _Your Mama Don’t Dance,_ he glanced over at the VIP section, and it felt like Time literally stood still for a few moments. If his jaw wasn’t dropped so low it was at his feet, he’d be pretty damn surprised, considering what’d caught his attention.

It wasn’t seeing the face of a rocker he recognized in that section as part of the crowd that stunned him so, but rather the Beauty standing next to him. With her Olive complexion that practically matched his own, hair that appeared the same shade his used to be before he went gray, and what looked like exotic looks from this distance, he’d damn near say he was smitten already. He certainly hoped she was one that wound up backstage that Eve, ’cuz he wanted to see her up close where he could see her Beauty better.

Shaking off what he felt, the bassist Returned his attention to the business at hand, which entailed grabbing a sip from his Water bottle before they ripped into the song. This was another song he loved performing live, although not quite as much as he’d say he loved doing _Ride the Wind_. Maybe his voice wasn’t the best like it’d been when he was younger–especially when they’d first recorded this cover–but he was still able to pull off the lead-ins for the Beginning of the chorus and his infamous one-liner pretty well. At least since they’d already done several shows this tour, his voice wouldn’t be shot altogether during the meet-and-greet later.

“Whew, that was fuckin’ awesome!” Rikki hooted as they headed backstage after their closer, _Nothin’ but a Good Time_.

“Damn right, it was!” the guitarist agreed.

“Prolly one of the best shows we’ve ever done,” their frontman added.

“Yeah, even I can’t disagree there,” Bobby said, having to clear his throat afterward.

“Ya all right, dude?” the drummer asked, concern etched into his features as he looked at him.

“Ah, I’m fine,” he chuckled. “Ya know how heavy a smoker I used to be back in the Day–that shit caught up with me a long Time ago.”

“At least your voice isn’t totally wrecked,” CC laughed. “All those high notes for all these Years, and I’m surprised I haven’t blown a vocal chord yet.”

“God knows I would, if I tried shooting up that high without a kick to the jewels!” the bassist said with a laugh of his own.

“So, what caught your attention right before _Your Mama Don’t Dance?”_ Bret asked curiously. “And don’t tell me it was nothing, ’cuz I know ya better than that.”

“Well, I’m hoping you’ll see during the meet-and-greet,” he answered honestly. “But it was one of the girls in the VIP section.”

“So, why don’tcha have her brought backstage?” Rikki asked. “God knows ya used to do that all the Time back in the Day.”

“Eh, I dunno if I wanna do that,” Bobby told him. “Seemed like she was here with a date, and I don’t wanna ruin that, if she is.”

“Like that’s stopped ya before,” the drummer chuckled.

“I’d like to think that version of me got left in the Past where he belongs,” he retorted with a snort.

The guys couldn’t help ribbing him since it’d been a while since his attention was last caught by any woman quite like this. Rolling his eyes at their antics, the bassist handed off his bass and got unwired so he could go grab a quick shower. He preferred not smelling like a sweaty, rotten gym bag when they’d a meet-and-greet, and this Eve was no exception to that rule.

After grabbing that shower and getting himself straightened out so that he was presentable, Bobby headed off to meet up with the rest of his band. They watched Def Leppard’s and Mötley’s performances from a special area set up for them where they wouldn’t get mauled by the crowd. He couldn’t help trying to catch glimpses of the girl who’d caught his eye, though, since the VIP section she was in was directly across from where he now was. From what he’d been able to tell from the stage, she was just too gorgeous _not_ to wanna keep looking at her, whether she knew it or not.

When he finally spotted her again, Bobby couldn’t help a chuckle when he realized she and the guy he was assuming was her date for the Time being were both seated. They didn’t seem to be enjoying Def Leppard’s performance nearly as much as they’d enjoyed Poison’s, so he could only assume they weren’t really fans of the British band. Everyone’d their own personal tastes, though, so he knew that some folks’d like one band more than another, no matter the Time period they were in.

Once they’d finished up their set, the third band joined his and the opening act in their special section following quick showers of their own. During the Time that they were grabbing showers, their crew was breaking down their stage setup so they could start loading it up to head off to the next show. The second they were done, Mötley’s crew started setting up their gear, and he knew it wouldn’t be long before the headliner finally took the stage. After that, all hell was gonna break loose backstage when the VIP ticketholders were let in, but he was looking forward to it more tonight than he ever did, if it meant getting to see that beautiful girl up close.

Following the closer of Mötley’s set, Ash and Aerin decided they needed a trip to the VIP bathrooms before they headed off to join the other ticketholders that were getting to go backstage. They’d gone in between Joan Jett and Poison, then again between Poison and Def Leppard, but that second bathroom trip’d been easily three hours ago. Neither of them’d wanted to fight the crowd that’d headed off to the bathrooms en masse between Def Leppard and Mötley, so they’d decided to hold it. Now they were kinda regretting that decision, but at least they’d been able to avoid royally embarrassing themselves.

After a bathroom trip as quick as they could possibly manage, the pair headed off to get in line for the backstage meet-and-greet. Ash pulled his pass outta his back pocket, where he’d stowed it with what lil he’d taken outta his wallet before they left their hotel. His roommate reached down the neck of her shirt, pulling hers from the hiding place she’d made in her bra so she’d be sure she didn’t lose it.

One of the security guards checked their passes like they did for everyone else and waved them into the area where they’d await the bands. Aerin was still practically bouncing, despite the way her feet’d to be killing her by now, which was garnering her a lotta attention she expertly ignored. The bassist couldn’t help a soft laugh at how she ignored the lusty looks of the guys in the group surrounding them, clearly too excited to care about being openly ogled.

“Ready to meet them, huh?” he asked with a chuckle.

“Hell yeah, I am!” the young woman answered, bouncing on her toes again. “Where’s the fast-forward button on Life so we can make ’em get out here quicker?”

“I don’t think one of those exists yet, sugar,” Ash laughed, abruptly sobering and wrapping an arm around her shoulders when one of the guys near her dared to try copping a feel. “Don’t even think about it, bub–she’s mine.”

“Ah, let him touch me, if he dares,” she said, shooting the bastard a decidedly evil grin. “He’ll leave here with two less body parts as much as I’ll leave here in cuffs.”

“You’re not getting yourself arrested tonight, damn it,” the bassist insisted.

“Well, neither are you, so quit acting like a territorial caveman,” Aerin shot back.

Knowing he wasn’t gonna win any argument on the matter with her, he huffed and tucked his hair back behind his ears so he could see. He knew better than to push her buttons, especially when she was in a good mood, since he wouldn’t like what’d happen by the End of the Night, if he did. This young woman certainly knew how to make his Life a living hell when she wanted to, although she usually refrained from such behavior unless pushed too far.

It wasn’t long afterward that the bands started coming outta their dressing rooms, each one taking seats behind specific tables. Most of the group started at Joan Jett’s table and worked their way up in order of who’d gone onstage first, but they chose to skip hers. They didn’t really like her as an artist, and her performance woulda bored them to sleep, if not for the volume of the Music.

Heading straight for Poison’s table, Ash made sure his young roommate wasn’t accosted by any other guys that’d been staring at her. They got to Rikki first since the drummer was at the End of their table that was closest to them, CC sitting to his right. Followed by him was the Silver-haired bassist, who’d a grin splitting his face from ear-to-ear, and finally the frontman sat at the other End of the table. Each man’d a pen in his hand, ready to sign just about anything that got put in front of them–even tits, when one woman asked them to sign her stretch marks.

“Well, hello there,” the drummer said, grinning up at them from where he sat. “I hope ya guys enjoyed the show.”

“Hell, yeah,” Aerin laughed as she handed him the spare shirt she’d bought earlier. “Gotta say, definitely one of the best Nights of my Life.”

“I think I can safely speak for all of us when I say we’re glad to hear it,” the guitarist chuckled, taking the shirt once his band mate was done with it.

“Hey, it was a killer show, just like we thought it’d be,” the youngest bassist in the room told them. “Definitely worth the money I paid for these tickets, plus some.”

“Glad to hear it,” CC told him, pushing the shirt on down the line toward the next band member as he took the one he’d handed to Rikki moments ago.

“Bobby, get with it, man,” Bret said, elbowing his own bassist from his End of the table.

“Ow–damn it, Bret!” Bobby snapped, turning to glare at him as he rubbed his sore ribs.

“Dude, you’ve a shirt in front of ya to sign, and another one coming up,” Rikki said.

“Sorry, couldn’t help it,” he grumbled, pulling the cap off his pen with his teeth.

“What on Earth’s gotten into ya?” CC asked, passing him that next shirt once he was ready for it.

_“She’s here,”_ was his only response as he signed Ash’s shirt, then passed it down the line to Bret as the young woman was taking hers back.

“Wait, what?” The frontman turned wide blue eyes to his friend. “Ya mean, the chick that caught your eye onstage earlier?”

The youngest bassist traded a look with Aerin, who shrugged as if to say she didn’t know what they were talking about any more than he did.

Bobby’s next response surprised him, though, ’cuz it was in straight Cherokee–which he actually spoke fluently. “She’s standing right in front of us, wing-nut,” he half-growled.

“Wait a minute–come again?” he finally asked, taking his own shirt back from the frontman.

The Silver-haired bassist looked up at him, his eyes wide with surprise. “Ya speak Cherokee, kid?”

“Fluently,” he answered. “My grandparents were Cherokee, and we spoke a combo of that and English in my house when I was growing up.”

The older man’s face and neck turned Beet-red as he realized that he’d understood what he’d told his friends.

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Ash chuckled. “The girl in question’d be flattered, if she’d understood ya, too.”

“Howddaya know that for sure, though?” he asked him.

“Trust me when I say that I know her pretty well,” the youngest bassist answered, aware that every eye in the room was on them now as he leaned down to whisper in his ear. “She’s my roommate, and has been for nearly a Year–I’d like to think we know each other pretty well by now.”

Bobby’s jaw dropped once again in surprise as Enlightenment Dawned on him, the pair heading off to Mötley’s table next. He’d been thinking ever since he’d seen them down in the VIP section of the crowd that they were here on a date, but in Reality, they were just friends and roommates. Finding that out gave him a bit of Hope, and he pulled one of the security guards down so he’d hear him request that they be stopped from leaving once they were done at the headliner’s table.

If that girl really was single, he didn’t wanna miss his chance to get to talk to her more, ’cuz he knew that if he passed up the moment, he’d prolly never see her again. That came with the territory of being a rock star, unfortunately, but he wasn’t gonna let what could very well be the best thing that ever happened to him get away so easily.


	7. Six

Aerin was surprised and a bit more than disturbed when a security guard walked up to her and Ash once they’d chatted with Mötley Crüe for a bit and gotten a couple things signed by each member. She just about thought the guy she’d threatened earlier’d decided to report her at first, so she was even more surprised when he told them why they were essentially being detained.

One of the Poison members’d requested they be held back for a bit once they were done at Mötley’s table, which caught her totally off-guard. A couple whistles and a Cat-call brought her attention back to the headlining band they were still standing in front of, and she couldn’t help blushing at the grins Nikki and Tommy were shooting at her. Nothing good could possibly come of anything they said to her, if those grins were anything to judge by, and she damn well knew it. That made her elbow the youngest bassist when he started laughing next to her, especially since he still wouldn’t tell her what Bobby’d said that he’d obviously understood.

“I betcha I know which one of them’s wanting ya to stick around for a while,” the oldest bassist in the room chuckled.

“Hell, I’ll get in on that bet,” his drummer agreed with a hoot.

Even Vince and Mick were willing to add money to the pot, a knowing smile on each of their faces.

“And who, pray tell, do ya think’d wanna have me detained?” she asked, cocking a brow curiously as they took a step back for other fans to take their turn.

“Well, if the looks he’s still shooting ya are anything to go by…” Nikki trailed off, still grinning as he quickly looked down.

Glancing around the room discreetly, Aerin watched none other than the Silver Fox’s head duck down at practically the same moment. “Uh, huh–is that so, Nikki?”

“He hasn’t stopped looking atcha since this group was let in,” Vince chuckled.

“I’d say he’s smitten, if I didn’t know any better,” his band’s quiet guitarist spoke up.

Flattered that they’d think such a thing, the young woman wasn’t quite sure what to say as she and Ash moved further outta the way. She knew damn good and well the man she’d befriended and been living with for nearly a Year wasn’t gonna let her even go back to the hotel till she’d talked to Bobby for a while. Then again, he knew how much she idolized and respected him, and not just as another rock star she’d kill for the bragging rights of sleeping with. He also knew how unlikely she was to make a move since, if there was anything she was shy about, it was flirting with someone.

Once the VIP crowd had thinned out and pretty much everyone’d cleared out unless they were finishing up at Mötley’s table, she felt her heart rate speed up a bit. Now free from the constraints of adoring fans, the Silver Fox rose from his seat, his gaze clearly focused on her. Even when he started heading in their Direction, she wanted to grab hold of Ash and not let him go as her Anxiety started kicking in, and hard.

“I’m glad to see ya stayed,” he said once he was close enough for her to hear him.

“Not like I’d a choice in the matter, really,” Aerin responded nervously.

“And why’s that?” the gray-haired bassist asked with a chuckle. “You’re a grown woman, from what I can tell–ya can do anything ya wanna.”

“’Cuz Ash no doubt woulda wrapped my hair around his fist and made me stay, even though he knows I don’t like my hair being messed with,” she answered, shooting a look at her friend.

“I’d take the kick to the jewels I’d get for it,” Ash chuckled, grinning at her.

That comment made even Bobby laugh, and that Sound was like Music to her ears. “Whyddaya say that, Ash?”

Switching to Cherokee again, the youngest bassist grinned. “If she’s not all but in Love with ya, man, I’ll suck my own dick.”

Both men cracked up, which made her scowl. “Care to Enlighten me to what’s so funny?” Aerin asked.

“Not without taking fifteen giant steps across the room!” he laughed.

“That’s it–you’re in for it when we get back home to Nashville, Ashley,” the young woman grumbled. “Which gives me plenty of Time to cook up how I’ma make your Life a living hell for about a week.”

“Ah, don’t get mad at him,” the gray-haired bassist chuckled, although there was a bit of a pleading look to his eyes. “I’m pretty sure he doesn’t mean any harm.”

Rolling her eyes, she told him that she wasn’t too sure about that, ’cuz while he might care about her as a friend should, Ash loved to embarrass her. It was always in good fun and jest, but he still embarrassed her on a regular basis, all the same, and she hated it. He never failed to irk her to the core when he did that and he knew it, but she couldn’t seem to avoid letting it get a rise outta her.

Chuckling once again, Bobby leaned down so she’d hear him quietly say that if the youngest bassist was right, the feeling was pretty close to mutual. Looking confused, the Aerin pulled back enough to see him clearly, which made him let out a slightly louder chuckle before he pulled her close again. She couldn’t help turning Beet-red from her cleavage all the way up to her hairline as he told her what her friend had said. Ash mocked being scared as she turned a dirty look on him, his legs crossing as if he really thought she was about to take a nut-shot.

Since she knew full well that he wasn’t gonna let her deny it, the young woman sighed and admitted that he was right about that. The Silver Fox actually looked surprised, as if he hadn’t expected that particular turn of events, but he quickly regained his composure. He insisted that they join him in his dressing room since he still had a while before bus call, and part of her wanted to scream with Joy while another part just wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole.

“So, ya really like me that much?” Bobby asked once they were locked in his dressing room where nobody’d overhear or barge in.

“I’d be lying, if I tried to deny it, as much as I’d by by saying I’ve a dick between my legs,” she answered dryly.

“Pretty sure that’s not true,” Ash chuckled. “I’ve seen ya in a bikini enough Times this Summer to tell.”

The gray-haired bassist couldn’t help a laugh at how she blushed so becomingly.

“Ashley, enough!” Aerin snapped. “Don’t make me bust out the ball cage again!”

“Whoa, hang on a second,” the older bassist said, abruptly sobering. “I thoughtcha said ya were just roommates, Ash.”

“Technically, we’re friends and roommates,” he admitted. “But we’re also something called play partners.”

Since he didn’t quite follow, Bobby cocked a brow as he crossed his arms.

“Aerin made me realize that I’m actually kinkier than just wanting to tie a partner to the bed,” the youngest bassist elaborated. “She and I don’t do anything sexual–we just have what’re called scenes, and a lotta Times, they End with me cumming.”

“So, she’s the one that Tops you?” he asked, actually sounding curious.

“Eh, we go back and forth,” Aerin answered. “We’re both Switches, after all, and he’s more of a Dominant streak while I’ve more of a submissive one.”

Neither of them missed the devious twinkle in his eyes. “And yet, ya don’t like people messing with your hair.”

“Can’t stand it,” she said, grimacing. “It feels weird, and most people try to pull it too hard. That’s not really a good thing when you’re as prone to migraines as I am, so I generally make anything to do with my hair a hard limit.”

Bobby couldn’t help a chuckle as he decided to tempt Fate by reaching out to finger the End of the strands that fell to her breasts. The young woman stiffened at first, obviously thinking he was trying to cop a feel till he raised his hand enough that he wasn’t touching her in such a manner. She still shot him a bit of a dirty look, but she didn’t try to yank her hair outta his fingertips, whether she liked what he was doing or not.

Instead of getting mad and trying to pull away, she surprised him by reaching out and doing the same thing to him. Wrapping the Ends of those gorgeous Silver tresses around two of her fingers, she gave an experimental tug, but not hard enough to make it hurt. He couldn’t help a soft moan in response, gentle hair-pulling having always been a turn-on for him, and she grinned.

Aerin gave his hair a slightly harder tug, which only made him moan louder than he had before as he let her get away with it. She ignored Ash snickering on her other side, both knowing full well that she’d only as much Control over the Silver Fox as he allowed. The three Cardinal rules of play– _safe, sane,_ and _consensual_ –meant so much to her that he wouldn’t even necessarily have to tell her to stop. If he looked like he wasn’t enjoying it, she’d stop before he’d to tell her to, ’cuz that was just how she operated. It’d been ingrained in her by various people, including her mother, ever since she’d shown the slightest interest in BDSM.

Eventually, Bobby’d moved close enough that their thighs were brushing, and she could feel his heat on her flesh, even though two layers of denim. The look in his eyes told her that he’d do anything to get her on his bus for a while, but she knew that’d never happen tonight–or even in the Future. She’d higher standards for herself than just being a man’s one-Night stand, no matter how attracted to any man she was, and this one was no exception. He wouldn’t get away with trying such a thing, just ’cuz he was one of her idols and she was practically in Love with him.

“What–enjoying me playing with your hair that much?” the young woman asked with a devious giggle.

_“Mmm,_ I’ve always loved having my hair played with,” he answered, nodding slightly. “I’d be a liar, if I said it _wasn’t_ a turn-on for me.”

“Ya don’t say, now?” Aerin laughed, tugging once again.

“Good God, you’re gonna make me embarrass myself like I’m fifteen again,” the Silver Fox groaned.

“Maybe that’s what I wanna do,” she chuckled, leaning close enough to nuzzle him.

“Fuck, what I wouldn’t give to have ya in my bed,” Bobby told her, practically whimpering at that gentle nuzzling.

“And there’s what I’ve been waiting on,” the young woman laughed, letting go of his hair and leaning back.

“Huh–whaddaya mean?” he asked, starting to snap outta it.

“Lemme ask ya this, Bobby–how much of that was your lil head doing the talking, rather than your big head?” Aerin asked with a grin.

The Silver Fox turned Beet-red again like he’d done during the meet-and-greet, his mouth clamped shut.

“’Cuz my rule of thumb–even before I met Ash–was that if ya can’t be my friend and respect me in the Morn, ya don’t deserve me tonight,” she told him.

“Well…honestly, I could respectcha in the Morn,” Bobby said after clearing his throat. “I mean, not many girls’ve those kinda morals, especially when they throw themselves at me like most fans do.”

The young woman kept listening as he said that, while he didn’t think friendship’d be immediate, he doubted it wouldn’t ever happen. After all, they didn’t really know each other that well, ’cuz anything she might know about him was just shit printed by the media. He’d a lotta different facets to his personality, and he kept his Life outside Poison private for a reason.

Aerin wasn’t very surprised when he admitted that he’d been stalked countless Times, a few to the point that he actually Feared for his Life. He Feared for the Lives of his kids, who were now grown, more than he’d ever Feared for his own, though. When one was famous, they were pretty much a magnet for groupies and the crazies, and it seemed the Silver Fox was no exception to the rule. So when he met a woman who actually acted like he was any other guy, not just a rock star, he always held the utmost Respect for her in Return.

Still, she wouldn’t cave to his more or less unspoken desire that she come back to his bus with him, and she didn’t miss Ash looking proud of her for sticking to her guns. Bobby was obviously disappointed, but that just made his Respect for her grow, if the look in his eyes was anything to judge by. He managed to get her to trade numbers with him, and just in the nick of Time since it wasn’t long before one of the roadies was knocking on the door and telling him it was Time to go.

On the way back to their hotel since their flight wasn’t till the next Morn, the young woman couldn’t help replaying the Eve in her head. Her friend chuckled when he caught her Dreamy look, knowing that she’d wanted to give in to the Silver Fox’s blatant, but Silent request. If there was anyone who was a true Lady, despite a strong libido that damn near put his own to shame, it was Aerin. Seeing how well they’d obviously hit it off made him glad he’d traded numbers with the older bassist, too, ’cuz he planned to put it to use. It was another one of those things he’d have to hide from her till the moment was right, but she’d thank him for putting his devious Nature to use eventually.


	8. Seven

_Los Angeles, California_

_September, 2020_

The next month was just as fun and exhausting for Bobby as it always was when he was on tour, and he was glad when the final tour date rolled around. He’d another reason why he was so eager to End the tour this Time around, though, and it’d nothing to do with the exhaustion or even his kids back home. After all, Zach and Zoe were both grown now–they might still need him in a lotta ways, ’cuz that was just human Nature, but they didn’t need him quite as much as when they were lil.

Every chance he got–whether it was between Sound check and a show, or during one of his few Days off–the Silver Fox kept in touch with both Ash and Aerin. He and the former were plotting for him to make a pit stop in Nashville before he went home once the tour was over, ’cuz he felt like he hadn’t gotten enough Time with the young woman that lone Night. From what the younger bassist was saying, the feeling was mutual, but she was just stubborn and prideful enough that she wasn’t gonna ask him to come see her, even once he finally could.

Once the Day of that final show arrived, he knew that he wasn’t the only one who was ready to get off the road at last. The trio of blondes that made up his band were all ready to get back home to their kids, most of whom were still minors. Aside from his own kids, Bret’s older daughter was the only one who’d already turned eighteen, but the frontman still missed her like she was a baby.

“Ready to finally End this tour with a bang, guys?” CC asked as they were getting wired up for their last show.

“Hell yeah, man,” the drummer chuckled. “I’m _soooo_ ready to get back home to Jude and Lucy, and to sleep in my own bed again!”

“Same here with getting back home to Raine and Jorja,” Bret agreed with a chuckle.

“I know the feeling,” the guitarist laughed. “Vallon’s ready for more guitar lessons, but it might be a month before I can do it without my hands feeling like they’re gonna fall off!”

“Ain’t that the Truth?” he chuckled, plucking a few chords on his bass to test his Sound pack. “I’m glad I taught Zach and Zoe how to play Years ago.”

“Lucky bastard,” the blondes laughed, causing him to give them a cheeky grin.

“So, aside from hanging out with those two for a while, what’s your plans for when ya get back home?” the frontman asked.

“Well, honestly, I’m not planning on going straight home,” Bobby admitted.

“Wait, really?” Rikki asked, looking surprised. “But you’ve been acting like you’re dying to get off the road, just like the rest of us.”

“And I am,” the bassist told him. “But I’m planning on going to see Aerin and Ash before I head back to Florida.”

“Really, now?” Bret asked, those blue eyes wide with surprise.

“We’ve been keeping in touch whenever I’d a free minute,” he chuckled, nodding. “She’s been too stubborn and prideful to actually ask me to come see her once the tour Ends, and he’s been helping me plot out how to surprise her with just that.”

None of the blondes could help a laugh at that as they awaited their final cue to head out onstage for this tour, but they’d to admit one thing. Bobby hadn’t quite been the same since that Night in Atlanta, but it wasn’t like he’d Changed in a bad way or anything. He seemed genuinely happier after meeting the young woman, and they’d all notice how his eyes’d Light up when they’d start texting, or when he got a phone call from even the younger bassist.

Time seemed to both fly by at break-neck speed and drag on simultaneously for all of them during that last show. He knew it’d felt that way to Joan Jett’s band during their final set right before their own, and that it was gonna feel that way to Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe. None of them wanted to admit that tonight was bittersweet, even if it wasn’t as much as Mötley’s last show back in 2015.

After their set, Poison headed backstage to get cleaned up, none of them surprised to see the blondes’ families waiting on them backstage. The only thing that made it a bit sad for the Silver Fox was that his own kids hadn’t been able to join in on the surprise due to conflicting work schedules. Even with a stop in Nashville first, he’d see them again soon enough, so he didn’t let it get to him as bad as it coulda as he headed off to grab a shower. Whether on a bus, in a hotel, or on a plane, he wanted to wash off the sweat that was making him feel sticky and gross.

“Well, I guess this is _au revoir_ for now,” CC said, shooting him a bit of a saddened smile.

“Hey, I think we all know this won’t be the last Time we hit the road together,” the bassist chuckled. “God knows if mine and Bret’s fight in ’06 couldn’t stop us, nothing short of Death will.”

“Yeah, good point,” Rikki chuckled, moving to give him a one-armed side hug.

“Go see your girl, man,” the frontman laughed, moving to take his turn with doing the same. “We all know you’re chomping at the bit to.”

Laughing, Bobby let the guitarist take his turn before passing out hugs to all their collective kids. “Hopefully, it won’t be as long before I see ya guys again.”

“Here’s hoping, but we’ll see what happens,” the drummer told him.

“Well, I gotta get, or I’ma miss my flight,” he said. “I better not get a phone call about any of ya killing each other before I manage to get out here again.”

Everyone cracked up at his words, but they also knew just how serious Bobby really was since the in-fighting amongst various Poison members was infamous. If he were honest with everyone, most importantly himself, their in-fighting over the Years was just as infamous as that of the in-fighting between Mötley members.

At LAX about an hour later, part of him was glad he’d arrived just in the nick of Time to avoid missing his flight. He hated having to wait in an airport any longer than he needed to, but he also hated having to rush to avoid being left behind and catch a different flight. It didn’t take him long to board the plane and get his carry-on stowed away, not that he planned on taking it outta the overhead compartment till he landed. All that was on his mind was making it to Nashville in one piece, not to mention getting some sleep during the flight since he was so exhausted.

Upon landing at BNA in Nashville about four hours later, Bobby was still beyond exhausted and glad that Ash’d answered his call before he boarded. He’d been up since he was woken up for Sound check at Noon, Pacific Time–which woulda made it two in the afternoon, Central Time. By the Time he’d gotten offstage after the actual show, it’d been around eight, Pacific Time, making it more like ten where the younger bassist was.

Following a two-hour meet-and-greet, drive Time to the airport after catching a cab, and just getting in his seat, it was easily one in the Morn, Pacific Time. Add in a four-hour flight, that woulda made it five on the West Coast right now, which meant it was seven in the Capital of country Music. There was no way he’d have been able to find his way to his destination, ’cuz he was too tired to think straight, let alone drive. He’d be more likely to wind up in an accident than to arrive safely, ’cuz he’d no doubt zone out and wind up getting hit or fall asleep at the wheel and hit someone else. Well, if he didn’t wrap his rental around a phone pole or something instead, and he still didn’t wanna do that.

Luckily, Ash was almost always up early from going into the office to work on his fashion line he said he’d started a few hours ago. He said he’d call in to let his most immediate underling know he was gonna be running a bit late, that way he could come get him and drop him off at the house. From there, it’d be up to the Silver Fox what he did, which’d prolly get some sleep before he did anything else.

Walking through the airport after finally disembarking with the last of the passengers, Bobby felt more like a zombie than he didn’t. He just about missed one of his bags as it came down the conveyor belt at baggage claim, and he was startled by the hand that suddenly grabbed it just as he reached for it. Seeing the mixed-up letters that spelled out _Fidelity_ when the fingers they were on were laced together made him look up and see the younger bassist next to him. Said younger man chuckled softly, motioning to head toward the exit instead of actually trying to say anything to him.

“I don’t even think I need to ask if you’re tired,” he chuckled once they’d reached his car, where they could actually hear each other.

“Fuck me, nekkid and running,” Bobby groaned before letting out a chuckle of his own. “Been up since two yesterday afternoon.”

“We talking Pacific or Central Time?” the younger bassist laughed.

“Two Central, Noon Pacific,” he specified. “Either way, that combined with jumping ahead two hours has me ready to mistake my dick for my big toe.”

“I’m not sure how the fuck you’d manage to do that!” Ash said, howling with laughter. “Pretty sure your dick’s a lot bigger than your big toe, and not attached anywhere near it.”

“Ya know what I meant, kid,” the older bassist chuckled.

“Yeah, I know, ’cuz I remember the feeling all too well,” he agreed. “Can’t help messing with ya since I get it, though.”

“Well, don’t mess with me too much,” Bobby told him. “My brain’s mush, so I might start trying to speak Portuguese on ya instead of English or Cherokee.”

“I didn’t know ya knew any Portuguese,” the younger bassist responded with a laugh.

“I don’t–that’s the point,” he retorted, managing a sleepy grin.

Ash shook his head as they got the couple bags he’d brought with him instead of having them sent home into his trunk. The poor guy looked absolutely dead on his feet, and he figured he’d fall asleep on the short drive from the arrivals section of BNA to his house. It’d take only about twenty minutes, as long as traffic on four-forty West didn’t get snarled like a ball of yarn attacked by a Cat, but if the older bassist was as tired as he thought he was, that wouldn’t matter.

Sure enough, as soon as he’d gotten settled in the passenger’s seat as comfortably as he could manage, his eyes started to drift shut. The younger bassist hadn’t even cranked his car before Bobby was starting to drift off, so he might just be dead to the World by the Time they got to the house. Hopefully even a short nap’d give him just enough Energy to get inside, ’cuz he could handle his bags easily.

Even though traffic was moving pretty well for Morn rush hour, his prediction that the older bassist’d be dead to the World upon their arrival at his house hit its mark. It took three tries to wake him up enough to tell him they were at the house, and even then, it still took him a few moments to register his words. Ash was almost worried he’d have to pick him up and carry him into the house, but he managed to get with it enough to avoid that. He was glad, though, ’cuz part of him thought it’d just be a lil too weird to be picking another man up and carrying him unless he was sick or at Death’s door, especially if he’d to cradle him like a child.

In the house, the younger bassist headed for the basement door with the suitcases he’d grabbed from his trunk for him. Bobby barely managed to stifle a yawn as he followed with his carry-on thrown over his shoulder, his host telling him that Aerin was no doubt still asleep. He didn’t go into detail about when she normally got up, apparently figuring he wouldn’t remember when he woke up again, himself. That was all well and good, though, ’cuz he honestly thought he’d struggle to remember his name and where he was for the first few minutes after he woke up.

“Get some sleep, man,” Ash said softly. “It’s soundproof down here, so I doubt you’ll hear a thing once Aerin _does_ get up.”

“She could prolly start blasting Death or thrash metal, and I’d sleep like the Dead right through it,” he chuckled. “Ya could ask me my own name, and I don’t think I could tell ya right now.”

“Yep, you’re dead on your feet,” the younger bassist laughed, taking care to keep his volume down so he wouldn’t jolt him back awake. “Like I said, get some sleep. Aerin prolly won’t be up for a good while yet, not that I think you’ll hear her down here, and I’ll be at the office working on some shit for APFI.”

“Sounds good,” Bobby yawned, arms stretched over his head. “Thanks again for letting me crash here and helping me surprise her.”

“Don’t think anything of it,” he told him. “Even if I can’t ever get her for myself, I still just wanna see her happy.”

“Like a true friend should,” the older bassist said, collapsing on the guest bed.

Ash wasn’t surprised in the least that his eyes rolled back in his head before he could even get them completely closed. He also wasn’t surprised by the soft snores he heard as he turned for the door to head back upstairs so he could leave again. If his young roommate was miraculously up this early, he’d tell her that he’d overslept and was running a bit late, but nothing too major. He fully Intended to make sure the older bassist’s presence was kept Secret till he was actually ready to surprise her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, I know, but I blame that on a couple different things. First and foremost, my disastrous first AND last Day on a new job, and secondly, the no doubt drunken fool who pulled a "hold mah beer and watch this shit" with the gas distributor outside my house around 0230 this Morn. Once I get some sleep, I'll see what happens with writing more while awaiting a call from the temp agency I "work" for, but I'm not making any promises.  
> ~Angel


	9. Eight

When Aerin finally woke up around Noon that Day, she didn’t realize she wasn’t alone in the house like she normally was. Ash’s car wasn’t in the driveway, so she assumed he’d headed into the office early that Morn like he usually did during the week. Since she wasn’t expecting any guests, she didn’t think to check the rest of the house, including either of the guest rooms down in the basement.

Like she normally did, the young woman started taking care of some household chores after turning on her playlist of wilder Poison songs that were her favorites. It contained a mixture of songs covering topics from making one’s Dreams happen to some of the raunchiest sexual tunes she’d ever heard in her Life. But she’d grown up on the vast majority of these songs, found others once she was an adult through a game she played, and they made a great playlist for when she wanted to move fast–which was always the case when she was cleaning.

After a couple hours of cleaning up, she headed out back for a smoke to judge how hot it was since she never fully relied on Weather reports from the local news and Weather apps. They Changed so often–sometimes every couple hours–that she swore the meteorologists making them went to work drunk, then got high on their lunch breaks, too. Maybe that was quite the exaggeration on her part, but that was the only thing she could think of, despite the old Weather adage for her area.

Deciding it was simply too damn hot to wanna mow the yard today like she’d been thinking about doing, Aerin headed back into the house where it was nice and cool. Maybe she’d head out and mow a lil later this Eve before it got too Dark out since the yard wasn’t that big, and most of it was covered by landscaping. Then again, she could always go grab the weed whacker from the storage shed and take care of that since there was even less weed-whacking to do. Now that she thought about it, that sounded like the perfect thing to do so she’d get some outdoor Time, after all, not to mention still get some shit done around the house. With a nod to herself, she headed back to her room to throw on a pair of jeans and what she called her work boots so she could do just that.

* * *

Down in the basement, Bobby was still sleeping like a rock, totally unaware the young woman he’d decided to pay a visit to after his tour was up and had been for a couple hours. He was still sprawled out pretty much the exact same way Ash’d left him that Morn, although he’d readjusted his head in his sleep a couple Times.

He certainly wasn’t expecting a sudden roar to jolt him awake and make him bolt upright, Terror momentarily making its home in his eyes. His heart rate shot up and he gasped for Air for the first few seconds, his brow furrowing as he realized what he’d heard that’d woken him up. Somebody was upstairs doing some yard work, but he couldn’t quite tell if it was Aerin or one of the neighbors. The Silver Fox grumbled as he threw his legs over the edge of the bed, knowing he wouldn’t be getting back to sleep now, no matter how hard he tried.

Making a mental note to question the younger bassist about his supposedly soundproof basement later, he headed for the bathroom. It didn’t seem like the young woman was even in the house, and if she was, she was being particularly quiet upstairs. The house was as Silent as a tomb aside from the AC running, which was a bit unnerving since he wasn’t familiar with his surroundings. Bobby still shrugged off the feeling and took care of the business at hand, debating trying to find food just yet.

“Well, at least whoever was making all that racket’s quick and efficient,” he sighed, settling back on the bed he’d woken up in. “I didn’t think they’d get done with their yard work this quick.”

Moments later, he heard a door open upstairs, and he realized it’d really been Aerin who’d been the culprit.

“Whew,” the bassist heard her say as that door closed. “Good Gods, maybe I shouldn’t have done that.”

With his brow furrowing in concern, he made to get up to go check on her, his desire to surprise her be damned.

“I wonder what Ash’s gonna be in the mood for when he gets home?” Aerin asked herself, her words a bit clearer as she passed the basement door. “Eh, guess I can text him and find out, but just not get to work on it till I cool off a bit.”

“Guess that means she’s all right,” Bobby sighed, settling back down as he grabbed his own phone.

Seeing that it was completely dead, he rolled his eyes as he got up to quietly dig out his charger so he could plug it up. No doubt it was gonna go insane for the first couple minutes after he turned it back on, ’cuz he hadn’t mentioned anything about a pit stop to his kids. Zach and Zoe worried about him as if they were his parents, not the other way around, especially when he was on the road. And even though they knew he was a private guy outside the band, they still wanted to know where he was damn near at all Times to make sure he hadn’t been celebrity-napped or something.

Just as he’d suspected, his phone went absolutely nuts with missed calls, texts, and voice mails for a good two minutes after turning it on. He was glad he’d put it on vibrate so that once he took it outta airplane mode and they started coming in, the young woman wouldn’t hear it constantly going off from upstairs.

Once it finally stopped vibrating, the bassist started actually checking the texts and voice mails to see who they were from. A few of the texts were from the guys, wanting to make sure he’d landed in Nashville safely rather than dying in a plane crash on his way there. The rest were pretty much evenly split between his kids, who were worried about that exact same thing and worse happening to him since they hadn’t heard from him.

_“DADDY!”_

Bobby couldn’t help a soft laugh at the shriek that made his ear ring once he called his daughter. “Hey there, baby girl,” he said quietly.

_“Where the hell are ya, Daddy?”_ she asked, clearly worried about him. _“Zach and I went to the airport to getcha, butcha never got off the flightcha shoulda been on!”_

“Shoulda being the key word there,” the bassist chuckled. “I was never on that flight like ya were expecting.”

_“What!?”_ Zoe practically squawked, and he could imagine her eyes bugging outta their sockets.

“Remember how I told ya I met someone on the tour I didn’t get nearly enough Time with?” he asked.

_“Yeah, we remember,”_ his daughter answered. _“We’d swear ya were in Love, if we didn’t know any better.”_

“Well, I’m not saying it’s definite, but there’s a good possibility I might be,” Bobby laughed. “And I decided to pay the girl a visit to find out.”

_“Really, now?”_ Hearing his son’s voice told him he was on speaker, and he couldn’t help grinning.

“Yeah, son,” the bassist answered. “Apparently, the feeling’s mutual, but she was too stubborn and prideful to ask me to come see her before I headed home. Or even to come up here to Nashville after I’d gone home and relaxed for a while.”

_“Wait, you’re in Nashville?”_ Zach asked, sounding surprised.

“Unless my other new buddy took me to Antarctica or something, yeah,” he answered with a chuckle. “Got here around seven, Central Time, and I was so exhausted, I vaguely remember threatening to start trying to speak French or Portuguese, if he messed with my head too much.”

_“Now I’m kinda curious as to who these people are,”_ the younger man mused, a bit of a dry tone to his voice.

Bobby couldn’t help another chuckle as he told him that one of them was none other than former Black Veil Brides bassist, Ashley Purdy. He’d raised his kids on a lotta the same stuff he’d been raised on, not to mention what was popular during his own band’s heyday. From there, they’d discovered various other bands that were pretty similar, and a few that were so far from it, it wasn’t even funny. Black Veil Brides was one they’d all discovered and liked pretty well, although he’d to say his favorite album by them was their sophomore, for sure.

His kids were definitely surprised by that news, but they settled down a bit more than they had been before. The way they saw it, if there was anyone they could trust with their dad’s safety, it was either a security team assigned to him or another celebrity. Another rock star’d know the Dangers of the Lifestyle they’d chosen, and would no doubt have ways of keeping him safe for them.

Not long afterward, he heard the front door open and the younger man in question call out that he was home _I Love Lucy_ -style. Letting out another soft laugh, the older bassist told his kids that he’d better let the guys know he was all right before getting Ash’s attention to help him with his surprise. Since they’d finally heard from him and knew he was safe, Zach and Zoe were perfectly content with letting him go on the promise that he’d call them again before he actually came home.

“Ya know I will, kiddo,” he was saying as someone knocked on the door to the room he was in.

_“Just let us know so we won’t turn up at the airport to getcha and find out you’re in another damn State altogether,”_ his son chuckled as he opened said door.

Seeing just the man he was looking for there, he held up a finger. “Will do, son, but Ash’s here now, so I’ma get off here. He’s gonna help me with surprising the girl I came to see since she’s his roommate, but I wanna let the guys know I’m all right before we do that.”

_“We love ya, Daddy,”_ his daughter told him, Zach chiming in.

“I love ya guys, too, and I’ll be home soon,” the older bassist promised, a wide smile on his face. “Talk to ya later, and for the Love of God, don’t burn my damn house down.”

Laughter rang out into his ear as they Ended the call, his kids knowing that was his way of telling them to behave themselves.

“Had to call the kids, huh?” Ash asked with a chuckle of his own as he entered the room and closed the door behind him.

“Damn phone wouldn’t stop vibrating for two minutes straight once I got it turned on ’cuz of all the missed calls, texts, and voice mails from mostly them,” he answered.

“Well, they were worried aboutcha,” the younger bassist said. “It just shows how much they love ya.”

“Oh, I know that,” Bobby told him. “And I love them just as much, or I wouldn’t have half-raised them on the road.”

“So, what’re we gonna do about surprising Aerin?” he asked. “She thinks I’m down here rooting around for something to go along with one of my projects at APFI.”

“I was kinda thinking follow ya up till I can see her from the basement door, but she can’t see me,” the older bassist answered. “Ya tell her you’ve a surprise for her–which ya kinda do–and get her settled on the couch or something so she won’t fall, if she’s shocked enough to pass out.”

“Sounds like as good a plan as any to me,” Ash agreed, nodding.

Returning the nod, the older bassist made sure he was presentable, which took him a bit since he decided to grab a shower. While he was busy with that, his younger, slightly Darker counterpart really did start rooting around elsewhere in his basement to keep up appearances for him. Thankfully, it didn’t take him long to get last Night’s grime washed off, considering he’d skipped showering after the show since they didn’t have a meet-and-greet for once.

After getting himself dressed and cleaned up so that his hair wasn’t a wild mess eerily reminiscent of the eighties, Bobby headed out to find his young friend. He found him in the main room of the basement, at least pretending to root through a box he appeared to’ve never unpacked. He apparently heard a noise behind him and turned to look, smiling as he saw the wet-haired Silver Fox standing there.

Making sure he was ready for this, the younger bassist grabbed something from the box he’d been rooting through to make it look like he’d found what he wanted and turned for the stairs. Knowing it was now or never, he made to follow him, glad he was light on his feet and hardly made a Sound without his boots on. That’d make surprising Aerin so much easier, if she didn’t hear him coming up the stairs behind the guy who was her friend and roommate. Course, that was as long as he didn’t bump his elbow or stub his toe and let out a yelp from the sudden pain he’d feel, or anything like that.

“Hey, Aerin–where ya at, ya lil rebel?”

“In the kitchen, Ash!” The young woman laughed as she heard her friend and roommate call out to her. “I told ya I was gonna get to work on dinner while ya were downstairs!”

“Well, are ya at a good stopping point?” he asked as he walked into the kitchen, a random bolt of fabric thrown over his arm.

“Yeah, I could take a break right about now,” Aerin answered with a nod. “Why?”

“’Cuz I’ve a surprise for ya, and ya might wanna sit down before ya get it.”

The young woman was instantly guarded as she cocked a brow at him, but settled on a bar stool at the island between the sink and double ovens. Ash knew how much she generally hated surprises unless it was from the Universe at large, so she couldn’t possibly imagine what he’d have gotten her that she’d have to sit down for.

“All right, man–her ass is planted, so c’mon up!” Ash called out with a grin.

Now she was even more confused, as evidenced by her expression, which shifted from wary to–well, downright confused. Seconds later, the young woman’s eyes all but popped outta their sockets as she clapped eyes on a certain Silver Fox she hadn’t expected to ever see again as he stepped into the kitchen. His own eyes were framed by the black frames of his glasses, and the hair that made her call him a Silver Fox in the first place appeared damp, like he’d just showered. As was apparently typical for him, he wore simple clothing and just as simple of jewelry, most notably the cross around his neck.

_“Bobby!”_ she squealed, jumping up to hug him.

“Hey there, girlie,” Bobby laughed, catching her against his torso as she practically barreled into him. “I don’t even think I need to ask if ya missed me.”

“Fuck, no!” the young woman answered with a laugh of her own. “I’m definitely surprised to see ya, though! I figured you’d have wanted to go home so ya could kick back, relax, and see your kids.”

“Well, I still do, but hey–Nashville’s a bit closer to Los Angeles than Miami is,” he chuckled. “Figured I’d make a pit stop here on my way home when a lil Birdie told me ya wanted to see me again, but didn’t dare ask me to stop by.”

“Ashley!” Aerin laughed, reaching over to playfully smack his chest.

“Guilty as charged,” the younger bassist laughed. “I knew damn good and well you’d never ask him to, even after he’d gotten home and seen his kids again.”

“Since we traded numbers that Night, I got him to help me out with planning this,” Bobby told her. “I figured it’d be better to have him come get me from the airport than to try driving here, and I was right.”

Cocking a brow, the young woman looked between them as she moved to check on the culinary masterpiece she was working on as she listened. Ash told her how he’d been so exhausted when he picked him up that he’d fallen asleep on the ride to the house. He wouldn’t even know how to get back to BNA for a flight anywhere else without GPS, he’d knocked out so hard in his passenger’s seat.

Once he’d gotten him into the house, the older bassist’d almost immediately collapsed on one of the guest beds downstairs. Aerin couldn’t help a laugh when he told her his eyes’d rolled back in his head before he could even get them completely closed, and soft snores’d started up before he’d even gotten outta the guest room. Knowing that the Silver Fox was pretty much like just about any other guy when he was tired brought to mind an endearing mental image, and the way he blushed slightly at hearing what he’d done was cute.

The older bassist settled on one of the bar stools to watch her, and she wasn’t surprised to hear his stomach start growling softly. If he’d come in from the airport and essentially gone straight to bed, she doubted he’d eaten in a while, prolly since before his last show. What with being a Southern girl, though, that just wouldn’t do, and she Intended to make sure he got plenty to eat while she was the one at the helm of the kitchen.

“So, what on Earth’re we having?” Bobby asked curiously. “’Cuz whatever it is, it smells damn good.”

“I should hope so,” she laughed. “It’s my mom’s recipe for linguine, and lemme tell ya, I could live the rest of my Life on just that, her mashed taters, and biscuits, and I’d happily die of a heart attack with a smile on my face.”

“Well, I dunno that you’d do that,” the older bassist chuckled. “I’ve heard those things’re painful.”

“Knowing my Luck, I’d be dead to the World, if and when it happened, so I wouldn’t feel a Blessed thing,” Aerin told him with a grin.

“With any Luck, definitely,” he agreed.

“And just to keep Ash from going too insane since he hates red meat, but I put a shit-ton of it in this stuff like my mom did, we’re having a giant version of my _Lughnasadh_ and _Mabon_ salads all thrown into a single bowl,” she said.

“Wait, really?” Ash asked, looking surprised. “How the fuck’re ya gonna do that?”

“It’s basically gonna be a massive fruit salad since we’re ’bout halfway between those two Sabbats,” the young woman answered.

“Don’tcha mean _Sabbath?”_ the Silver Fox asked, cocking a brow at her.

“Nope, I meant _Sabbat,”_ Aerin answered. “Pagan holidays, not from some other religion–or even lack thereof.”

Curious as to what she meant, Bobby’s full attention was riveted on her as she continued working on dinner, the younger bassist jumping in to start on the fruit salad for her. She explained her chosen Spirituality to him, and that the Witches’ holidays were beyond numerous, including the eight major Sabbats pretty much everyone knew of the World over.

She explained that, by _Lughnasadh_ and _Mabon,_ she was talking about two of the three harvest festivals. The first one was in celebration of the Corn, Wheat, and grain harvest, generally celebrated roughly six weeks after the Summer Solstice on August first. Well, that was if one was in the Northern hemisphere, ’cuz if one was in the Southern hemisphere, the Seasons–and therefore the Sabbats–were backward. That meant that folks in Australia celebrated _Lughnasadh_ when folks in the Northern hemisphere were celebrating a Sabbat called _Imbolc,_ and vice versa.

Both men were enthralled as she explained, considering she hadn’t really explained much about it to even Ash since he hadn’t seemed all that interested. Sure, they were both a bit wary of her being a Witch, but those Fears were greatly allayed when she said that she actually steered clear of spell work. Her only reason for having an Altar set up in her room was to use as décor and a focal point while meditating, rare as the latter was for her.

“Sounds like something I could get used to,” the older bassist said thoughtfully. “I mean, I grew up and have been Christian my entire Life.”

“And that’s perfectly fine,” she told him. “Just don’t try to get me to read the bible and go to church any more than I’ma try to force reading any of my Pagan books and dancing nekkid under the Moon on you, and we’ll be good.”

“Wait, ya seriously dance under the Moon nekkid?” Bobby asked, unable to help cracking up.

“It’s fun, and being Sky-clad doesn’t disrupt Energy flow, especially on the Night of the Full Moon,” the young woman answered with a grin. “And as private as the back yard is–well, even Ash can’t see my Sacred Circle from pretty much any angle.”

“The hell’s a Sacred Circle?” said younger bassist asked, looking just as confused as the Silver Fox.

“Basically, where a lotta Witches do their spell work, whether indoors or out,” Aerin explained. “It’s meant as a Protected, positive Space, where we can throw out our Energy and Intents without negative Forces trying to stop or sway us from our goals.”

“So, whyddaya have one, if ya don’t do spell work?” he asked.

“For my own Peace of mind when I’m Grounding and Centering, or Charging things like those tumbled Stones ya were asking me about that one Time,” Aerin laughed.

She explained how it made her feel safer, like she could let down any walls she’d consciously or unconsciously thrown up more, as she started plating dinner. Bobby thought her religious choices were a bit weird since he didn’t know much about them, but then again, maybe his own were just as weird to her. It was certainly something interesting to ponder, now that he was off the road and had more than enough free Time for that and simply getting to know her.

After dinner, they all headed down to the pool to just chill out and relax, and he was certainly impressed by it. Unlike the mostly flat property he owned and called home down in Florida that he’d never really cared to landscape, this place was like a Hidden Oasis come to Life. Going down the stairs from the back deck, they arrived on the Stone pool deck near the entrance of the shallow End, which was right next to a man-made, but Natural-looking Waterfall. At the other End of the pool was a short set of stairs, which led to a sizable patio area with a walkway that led to another entertainment Space underneath the back deck.

That short set of stairs was right next to the deep End of the pool, which came to an End with the Infinity edge that somewhat served as a Fountain. Bobby liked how peaceful it felt back here, and it almost made him never wanna leave, so he could see why the younger bassist’d bought this particular property when he’d moved from Los Angeles.

Down in one of the back corners of the yard on the other side of the patio and back deck, he got an odd feeling that wasn’t threatening, but wasn’t quite as peaceful, either. Aerin laughed and told him that area was her Sacred Circle, and he was feeling like that ’cuz it was Warded to keep out anyone she didn’t allow into it. He wouldn’t necessarily get hurt from crossing its boundary, as long as his Intentions were good and pure, but he’d still get that uneasy feeling like he needed to stay away unless given explicit permission or he needed to go there for Protection.

“Well, I guess that explains it,” he chuckled as they let their legs hang in the Water about halfway down the pool.

“Kinda like I’d ask ya to explain exactly why ya wanted to surprise me,” the young woman told him.

He’d to admit, she was certainly nothing, if not bluntly honest. “Well, if I’m honest–I felt like I didn’t get enough Time with ya that Night when we met in Atlanta,” Bobby said.

She simply listened, but he felt a sudden Energy shift that told him she felt the same without her having to actually say so.

“I’m not saying I’m madly, head-over-cowboy-boots in Love or anything–but I definitely think the potential’s there,” the older bassist admitted. “I haven’t felt like this since I first met my ex-wife, and that was back in ’87.”

“Really, now?” Aerin asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

“I mean, don’t get me wrong–Mishy’s not the only one I’ve ever loved,” he answered. “But I never seemed to love anyone quite the same way I loved her, and I don’t think it’d anything to do with us having kids together.”

“Sounds to me like she was supposed to be your Soul mate, but shit Changed pretty drastically over the Years,” Ash piped up thoughtfully.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Bobby agreed with a nod. “I mean, my drinking wasn’t easy to deal with for her, so I’m amazed she stuck around as long as she did. That didn’t mean she’d to cheat on me with my best friend from _outside_ the band, just ’cuz shit went South between us–which wasn’t helped by my back surgery, either.”

“Wait, back surgery?” the younger bassist asked.

Laughing, he explained what’d happened to him, and how it coulda very well killed him, if he’d gone on without seeking treatment like he’d ultimately been forced to do. Herniating a couple discs in his lower neck right near his upper back was painful, but not necessarily Life-threatening. Those discs practically exploding like jelly donuts with something heavy dropped on them when he’d jumped off Rikki’s drum riser and his spine hadn’t been able to take the impact damn well coulda been, if they’d caused his vertebrae to pinch or sever his spinal cord.

Aerin couldn’t help a wince, even though she’d read about that particular part of his Past, since she hadn’t known if it was actually true. She told him that she didn’t think he’d lie about something that serious as she knocked his hand aside when he made to rub the back of his neck, but she knew it coulda been nothing more than bullshit printed by the media.

The Silver Fox couldn’t help a pleasured groan as he felt her thumbs start digging into the back of his neck for him, her fingers tackling the sides and his shoulders. He couldn’t help cocking a brow when he heard Ash snicker and turned just enough to see him grinning at them like a Cheshire Cat. He was surprised, though, when the younger bassist told him that the young woman didn’t dole out massages to just anybody, so he’d best be damned grateful that she was doing such a thing for him.

It wasn’t much longer before said younger bassist decided he was gonna call it a Night, considering he’d been up since early that Morn. Bobby wasn’t the least bit tired since it was easily three or four before he’d been so rudely awakened, even though he knew the young woman hadn’t meant to wake him up. She wasn’t really tired, either since she’d slept till Noon, and just as much like a rock as her potential boyfriend had. With Ash now back in the house, that left them alone in the back yard together, and he couldn’t have been more glad. There was a bit of awkward tension between them, but nothing a few jokes and some laughter couldn’t overcome, which boded well for them.


	10. Nine

A week later, Bobby’d managed to talk the young woman he thought he was already falling in Love with into coming back to Florida with him for a week. She’d been reluctant, saying that she’d hated the heat and humidity when she lived in her home State of North Carolina, and had always heard that it got even worse, the further South one went. Considering he hadn’t been talking about moving there with him long-term, she’d finally broken down and agreed since she was enjoying their Time together, but said she’d a warning to give him.

He’d been surprised when Aerin–who seemed practically Fearless–admitted to being pretty much Deathly terrified of three things. Snakes, getting trapped somewhere with absolutely no way out, and heights over a story, maybe two at the most terrified her to no End. Getting trapped somewhere with no way out actually made her have panic attacks, although not to the point of passing out.

The Silver Fox was just barely able to reassure her that they weren’t gonna go down in a ball of Fire, and if they did–well, he’d be right there with her, like it or not. If she died ’cuz their plane crashed somewhere between Nashville and Miami, he’d be dying right beside her, along with pretty much everyone else on board. No one was likely to escape with their Life, and anyone who _did_ survive a plane crash from thirty-five thousand feet or higher was damned lucky, indeed.

“Just relax and take a few deep breaths,” Bobby told her, gently rubbing her back as they awaited their boarding call.

“Easy for you to say,” she retorted. “You’ve flown all over the Planet–I’ve only been on a plane twice.”

The bassist’s eyes widened as he realized exactly why she seemed so terrified now.

“Hell, I’ve only been in been in an airport twice,” Aerin continued. “The closest I ever got besides that was dropping my mom off at PTI in Greensboro, then having to go back and pick her up when her flight unexpectedly got cancelled.”

“Ah, sweetheart,” he said, pulling her against him for a hug. “The worst part’s pretty much when we take off and as we’re landing. In between, it’s pretty smooth, as long as we don’t hit any turbulence–but that doesn’t really happen very often.”

The young woman grumbled against his neck, and he ignored the few looks he was sure they were getting from other patrons.

“Like I said, just take some deep breaths,” Bobby whispered in her ear. “I know ya think it won’t help ya, but it will.”

“Not like the Crystals in my pocket–and they’re just barely helping,” she mumbled against his throat, which honestly felt a bit arousing to him.

When their boarding call finally came, Aerin almost wanted to back outta her End of the bargain while she still could. She knew that’d just upset the bassist and make him think her a liar that he couldn’t trust to ever keep her word, so she forced herself to take a deep breath. A soft chuckle came from her left as he watched her square her shoulders, and he wrapped an arm around said shoulders as they headed off to the gate.

On the plane, they were quick to find their seats up in first class, which were certainly comfier than back in coach. They were spaced a bit further apart, although it didn’t seem to be by much, and they were more ergonomic than those cheap seats most others’d to sit in. In all Honesty, the young woman didn’t particularly give a damn what part of the plane she was in, as long as it landed safely.

After stowing their carry-ons in the overhead compartment, Bobby settled in his seat next to hers and got himself strapped in. She was quick to do the same before reaching over to grab his hand, her grip surprising him a bit as she squeezed once their fingers were laced together. He hadn’t thought she’d have quite that tight a grip, but he supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised since no woman on the Planet was truly weak. Still, he reached over to loosen her grip a hair since it was a bit too tight, but still Returned that squeeze as they awaited word that they’d been cleared for take-off.

The flight from Nashville was relatively uneventful, aside from the lil bit of turbulence they’d to fly through as they skirted around a Storm near Tallahassee. Bobby’d honestly been through far worse, to the point that he’d once whacked his head on the ceiling of the plane. He’d been on his way back from the lavatory during a flight to Los Angeles, and they’d gone right through the Center of a Storm that’d cropped up outta nowhere. Unable to strap himself in before they’d gotten caught up in it, he’d barely been able to brace himself so he wouldn’t get tossed around too much, but hadn’t been able to avoid hitting his head, as tall as he was.

Aerin couldn’t help laughing softly at the Thought of a thirty-something Silver Fox, glaring up at the ceiling as he fought the urge to rub his head so he could keep himself braced. Imagining the flight attendants wanting to have their pilot radio ahead to have a medic waiting to check him out when they landed and him fighting them on the matter just made her laugh harder. He didn’t care that other passengers were now glaring at her, though–he was just glad she wasn’t freakin’ out.

When they finally landed at MIA in Miami, the young woman couldn’t help heaving a sigh of relief that they were on the ground again. Even though it was more than a lil weird, this was one Air Witch who preferred having something stable and solid under her feet rather than spreading her wings and soaring, so to speak. It was definitely something that’d always confounded her mother, who was a true Earth Witch in every sense, right down to being a Garden and Kitchen Witch–and shoulda been the one who preferred to keep her feet on the ground.

“All right–let’s go get our bags before they disappear into the _airport void,”_ the bassist said, grabbing their carry-ons from overhead.

“The _airport void?”_ she asked, cocking a brow as she took hers–which was actually her purse.

“That’s what I call wherever lost baggage winds up,” Bobby laughed, lacing their fingers together. “And I’d rather my shit _not_ End up there, if I can help it.”

“I second that, so let’s get going,” the young woman agreed.

Following him down the tunnel that essentially connected the plane to the terminal for boarding and disembarking, Aerin made sure to keep a tight grip on his hand. It wasn’t like she knew where she was going, or knew anyone here who might be able to help her find him again, if they got separated. And getting separated, especially under those kinda circumstances, was the last fuckin’ thing she wanted to do right now.

They managed to collect their luggage without incident, and the bassist looked down at her as he turned for a waiting area. He said that he didn’t know about her, but he could use a bathroom break before he exploded since he wasn’t as young as he’d once been. Biting her lip nervously, she followed him to the nearest bathroom and said that she wasn’t going in the womens’ for her own bathroom break till he got back out. He could see that she was terrified of getting separated and agreed to make it as quick as he physically could. Once he was done, he’d take his turn waiting for her before they tried to find a quiet spot so he could call his kids.

After their bathroom break, they managed to find a quiet corner in the Starbucks that was one of many restaurants and other businesses near the on-site hotel. Settled in that quiet corner with a cup of coffee, despite the heat outdoors, Bobby turned on his phone for the first Time since before they’d boarded in Nashville. Unlike when he’d turned it on at Ash’s house, it didn’t go crazy with missed calls, texts, and voice mails once he took it outta airplane mode. Thankful for that since it meant less waiting, he found his son’s contact and tapped the call button before holding it up to his ear.

“Hey, son,” he chuckled once he got a response. “Yeah, just landed not too long ago at MIA.”

Aerin simply sipped her coffee as she listened to his End of the conversation.

“Yeah, we’re waiting at the Starbucks closer to the hotel, not the one near Earl of Sandwich,” the bassist said, grinning as he paused to listen. _“Yes, we_ –which I’ll explain once ya get your ass here.”

She couldn’t help a snicker as he rolled his eyes, despite the smile still on his face.

“Boy, just get your ass here before I’ve to bust that butt like I did when ya were a kid,” Bobby laughed. “I’m kinda impatient to get home, and if I’ve to get a cab, you’re gonna get it even worse.”

The young woman couldn’t help cracking up when he Ended the call a few moments later and moved just enough to put his phone back in his pocket.

“Damn kids–why’d I ever have any again?” he chuckled, reaching for his own cup.

“I haven’t the slightest,” Aerin giggled. “Personally, I don’t ever plan on making _that_ mistake, no matter who the potential daddy is.”

“Even if that potential daddy was me?” the bassist asked, a brow cocked curiously.

“We’ll talk about it more at your house, but yeah, even if he were you,” she answered, nodding.

Knowing better than to argue with her after getting to know her at least a lil better over the past week, Bobby simply nodded his agreement. She was the type who didn’t like being pushed to talk before she was ready, and there were just some things that didn’t need to be discussed in a public setting. He got the feeling this was one of those matters, and that privacy was gonna be a great thing for such a conversation.

A few minutes later, he turned slightly when he heard a familiar voice behind him, a smile crossing his face as he turned to see his _mini-me_. Nobody’d ever been able to deny that Zach was his son, ’cuz the boy’d looked just like him his entire Life–almost to the point that he wondered if he’d actually reproduced normally, or if he’d simply cloned himself without realizing it.

Zach seemed surprised to see a woman about his own age with his dad, but still smiled at her and reached out to shake her hand. He was even more surprised when the bassist told him that she was the one he’d met on tour and felt he hadn’t gotten enough Time with that one Night. Those Chocolate eyes he’d clearly inherited from the older Dall widened a bit as he gave her another once-over, and Aerin could practically hear the wheels in his head turning. It wasn’t hard to tell that he’d been thinking of trying to flirt with her, and that he was either thinking twice about it ’cuz his dad was interested in her, or trying to figure out a way to split them up before they could ever get together.

Careful to keep her Thoughts to herself, the young woman grabbed her purse and suitcase, shooting a look at the Silver Fox when he dared try to take them from her. She was too Independent for her own good sometimes, and if his son wouldn’t let him take his own luggage, she wasn’t gonna let him take hers. Him threatening to take it, anywhore and throw her over his shoulder like a sack of taters was absolutely ridiculous, but made his son laugh. The younger Dall warned her that, Past back injury or no, his dad was a stubborn enough man to do it–even if it was detrimental to him.

“Home, sweet fuckin’ home,” Bobby chuckled as they pulled into his driveway not long afterward. Taking a look at his young guest, he couldn’t help laughing harder at her mostly bland look. “What–not liking it or something?”

“Never said that–or anything else, smartass,” she laughed. “Honestly, I’d rather see the more Mediterranean architecture than this shit they call _Modern_ and _contemporary.”_

“Really, now?” the bassist asked, even his son cocking a brow at her curiously as they started getting outta his car in front of one of the two garage doors.

“If I’m honest, I prefer shit more along the lines of Victorian in style,” Aerin answered, nodding. “Not quite craftsman, but not totally Victorian, either. And don’t even get me started on ranches, ’cuz I hate the one-story style–even though stairs and I generally don’t get along well.”

“Don’t tell me I’ma have to pick ya up and carry ya upstairs for Dad,” Zach chuckled.

“Pick me up unless I’m dying, and see how quick I make sure he gets grandbabies outta only Zoe,” the young woman told him, giving him a dirty look.

“Yikes, girl,” he said, holding up his hands in surrender as he backed away, his dad practically dying laughing. “I kinda like my nuts right where they are. And damn it, Dad–breathe before I’ve to give ya CPR!”

“I _am_ breathing, son!” Bobby crowed, hands braced on his knees. “I wouldn’t be laughing–or talking–if I weren’t breathing.”

“But yeah, that’s my personal tastes when it comes to home architecture,” she reiterated. “Prolly why I liked Ash’s place so much as soon as we pulled up there. It’s not completely my style till ya get inside, but it certainly gets closer to it.”

“Going by that description, I think the interior here’ll be closer to your style than ya think,” the younger Dall chuckled, helping his dad straighten up before he moved to start unloading their bags.

While his son was handling their luggage, the bassist led her to the recessed, arched front door, which he was quick to unlock after pulling out his keys. Aerin was certainly impressed by the luxury of the foyer it opened into, even though–like at Ash’s house–she didn’t necessarily like how bright and Airy it was.

Directly in front of them was what she’d definitely call a great room, if she went by the terminology she’d learned from Vanilla Ice’s renovation show on DIY Network. Pretty much the only thing she liked there, again due to how bright and Airy the room was, was the old-World-style fireplace. It looked like something she imagined she’d see in an older, maybe even more Medieval Mediterranean home, and the sight of it made her practically purr. That brought a grin to the face of the Silver Fox as he let her explore the layout, ’cuz he was glad that–even if it wasn’t her normal style–she seemed to like it.

Off to the left through a pair of archways was a bar area, which the young woman didn’t think got used very often, if he’d really quit drinking. Well, not unless everything was virgin in Nature, but that was something she wasn’t worried about right now. To the right of the great room–which Bobby actually called the formal living room–through another pair of archways was the formal dining room. Again, it was way too bright and Airy for her tastes, but he said it rarely ever got used unless he’d the whole band out East for the holidays or something. From there, she found her way to the kitchen, which’d a lot more of the Darker tones she preferred in a very Mediterranean style.

The kitchen opened into a less formal dining and living room, which were used more often than their formal counterparts. What she could see of the back yard so far was downright luxurious, if not in the Hidden Oasis kinda way she preferred that Ash’s was. Aside from that, the only rooms left on the first floor were the movie theater and kids’ playroom, which he used as his office.

“Now for the upstairs, if ya wanna,” the bassist told her. “Or we can wait till we’re ready to go to bed tonight, if ya don’t wanna go ahead and take your stuff up to one of the guest rooms.”

“We can head on up,” Aerin told him, not noticing his son bringing their bags into the foyer. “Not like my hip’s killing me right now–or that I’d admit it, even if it was.”

“Such a stubborn lil trooper,” he chuckled.

“Wait, what about your hip?” Zach asked, startling her.

“For as young as I am, I’ve joints more suited to somebody your dad’s age, believe it or not,” the young woman answered. “Hence why stairs and I tend to fight instead of getting along.”

_“Day-um,”_ he breathed, looking surprised. “Rheumatoid arthritis or something?”

“Wouldn’t be surprised if I’d been an undiagnosed juvenile case,” she answered. “My mom hated taking me and my kid brother to the doctor unless it was for an annual physical, or we were practically dying. No matter how many Times I complained, she insisted my knees hurting all the Time were just growing pains–even long after I’d quit growing.”

“Doesn’t sound like much of a mom to me,” the younger Dall said, refusing to let her carry her own bags now.

“Don’t even get me started on that bitch, nor why I ran away from North Carolina like I did last Year,” Aerin grumbled. “Your dad doesn’t even know, not ’cuz I’ma liar or anything, but ’cuz it was hard enough to tell Ash–I don’t relish going through that again so soon.”

“Hey, it’s understandable, sweetheart,” Bobby said, gently rubbing her back. “We’ve all got nasty parts to our Pasts, I’m sure–God knows I do.”

Nodding, she gave him a quick hug that he happily Returned, then gestured for him to lead the way upstairs. At the top of the stairs, which wound up the tower at the front of the house so they were facing the same Direction as when they’d walked in the door, the bassist made a right-hand turn. His son followed behind her, somehow able to handle all their luggage with the exception of his carry-on and her purse at once.

There were four different guest rooms, or rather suites since they each possessed their own en suite bathrooms. None of them were decorated quite the same way, and he told her the only ones to usually use them were the rest of his band when they were in town. The kids’d often have friends over, or he’d have his brother and his kids down from Pennsylvania, but other than that, they generally sat empty more often than they didn’t.

She was quick to pick the one he said that Rikki normally used when he was here, which made him laugh as Zach set her bag down for her. Over the last week at Ash’s, he’d gotten to know more about her, and she’d made no bones about the drummer being the second most attractive to her from the members that made up his band. He’d always top the list, whether they were talking about the here and now or thirty Years ago, which made him feel flattered more than he already did. After that, she said the third most attractive to her was a former member, but she wouldn’t say exactly who.

Leaving her to get settled and maybe catch a nap, Bobby took one of his own bags from his son and told her he’d be in the master suite. That was on the other side of the house, which’d require a left at the top of the stairs instead of a right. Nodding, the young woman left her suitcase where she wouldn’t trip over it later and stretched out across the bed, clearly in need of a nap.


	11. Ten

“So, that was the chick you’ve practically been gushing about, Dad?”

Looking up from unpacking his clothing suitcase so he could sort out the clothes that were still dirty from the lil bit he’d managed to wash at Ash’s, Bobby saw that his son was working on his other one for him. It was routine the boy’d fallen into when he was–well, still a boy that he’d never broken, and he honestly didn’t think he ever would.

“Yeah, Aerin’s the girl I’ve been talking about,” he answered, balling up what was in his hand and taking a pot-shot for the hamper in his closet.

“I guess the only reason I’m surprised is ’cuz she looks like mine and Zoe’s age,” Zach admitted.

“She’s between you and Zoe, actually,” the bassist chuckled. “I’m not telling her age for her outta Respect, so that’s as close as you’ll get outta me.”

“Does she not like people knowing her age or something?” his son laughed.

“Actually, she’s unlike any girl I’ve ever met when it comes to her weight and age,” Bobby admitted. “She’ll answer with brutal Honesty when anyone asks, almost like she doesn’t care–but I can tell she does, and that it still bothers her.”

“Damn, really?” the younger man asked, pausing in taking his toiletries to the bathroom for him. “Then why does she still let people ask, if it bothers her?”

“Ya got me, son,” he answered. “I’ve really only known her for a week, but that first Night was what made me wanna really get to know her.”

Zach listened as he recalled that first Night in Atlanta, telling him how she’d been a bit of a tease, but refused to give in to his more or less Silent plea to join him on the bus. Something about her’d just Called to him in his dressing room, but he couldn’t figure out what it was to save his Life. He knew a lotta it was the fact that she’d respected that–rock star or no–he was just a guy at the End of the Day like even her neighbor. Part of him knew without having to ask that if he’d told her to, she’d have stopped gently tugging his hair that Night, and prolly even let go of it altogether.

His son knew he was actually prone to some bad headaches, especially when he let his hair grow out like it currently was. Those headaches only got worse, the longer his hair got–that and getting sick of him yanking it as a baby and toddler was why he’d shaved his head back in ’94. If it weren’t got that reason, he wouldn’t care if anyone yanked his hair so hard, they nearly pulled out a handful.

As he told him about how Aerin’d been careful not to pull his hair too hard, but rather just enough to be a tease, those eyes he’d inherited from him widened. When he told him about the question she’d asked him–could he be her friend and respect her in the Morn?–it seemed that Zach was even more surprised than before. It certainly woulda made him take pause to think about how he could possibly respond without getting himself in trouble–just like the bassist’d done that Night. Not only had she respected him as just another human being, but she’d wanted the same Respect in Return, nothing less.

“Wow,” his son breathed in Awe. “Yeah, she really _is_ different from all the others.”

“Now ya see why I wanted to stop in Nashville on my way home and see her again, don’tcha?” Bobby chuckled.

“Yeah, I really do,” he answered with a nod. “I’d be the same way, had it been me instead.”

“I thought so,” the bassist said with a smirk. “And no, I don’t give a shit that she’s young enough to be one of my kids, either.”

“She doesn’t seem like _she_ gives a shit about _you_ being old enough to be her daddy,” Zach mused.

“’Cuz I don’t.”

Startled, both of them jumped as they turned toward the bedroom doorway, surprised to see her standing there.

“Oh, do continue–I can’t stand folks talking about me behind my back,” Aerin chuckled. “I’d rather they insult me to my face, if that’s what they’re gonna do. It hurts either way, but not as bad as when somebody plunges a knife in my back, so to speak.”

“We weren’t talking shit aboutcha, sweetheart,” the bassist chuckled once he’d regained his senses.

“Ya don’t say, now?” she asked, a somewhat knowing lil smirk on her face.

“If anything, Dad was practically extolling your Virtues,” his son laughed.

“What few of ’em he knows about, that is,” she said, joining his laughter. “There’s a lot about me he doesn’t know, and even Ash knows only about half of it.”

That piqued both their Curiosity, but they were interrupted from asking her what she meant by hearing another feminine voice call out from downstairs. Bobby kept his mouth shut as he let his son call out a response, already knowing it was his other Pride and Joy. She quickly started up the stairs, if the sudden tapping of high heels on the Marble was anything to judge by, and she was in the master suite seconds later.

Zoe practically squealed and barreled into him, laughing as she wrapped her arms around him as tight as she could possibly get away with. Laughing, the bassist barely kept them upright instead of letting her knock them over, which coulda Ended very badly from him slamming his head into the vanity table across from his bed.

His son managed to catch Aerin and haul her back against him as a means of stopping her from getting knocked down, the younger man shooting his sister a bit of a dirty look. Once she’d found her balance, he let go of the slightly older woman, who was giving Zoe an even dirtier look before she simply turned and walked outta the room. Sometimes he couldn’t believe how rude his baby sister could be, but others, he wasn’t surprised in the slightest. How she acted usually depended on how excited to see their dad she was, and whether she liked whoever she nearly knocked down or not.

“Baby girl, ya owe somebody an apology,” Bobby said, a stern note to his voice that he rarely had to use anymore.

“Who do I owe an apology to?” she asked, crossing her arms.

“My friend, whom your brother just barely saved from winding up on her ass,” the bassist answered, crossing his own arms. “No _ifs, ands,_ or _buts_ about it, either–I raised ya with better manners than whatcha just showed.”

Zoe looked like she was about to try to fight him on it, quickly shutting her mouth as his eyes hardened like Stone.

_“Now,_ Zoe Brianna,” he half-growled. “There’s not very many places she can hide, so I don’t care if it takes ya all Night and searching the entire house.”

“Yes, Daddy,” the young woman sighed, her head hanging slightly as she turned to head outta the master suite.

Shaking his head, Bobby got back to work on unpacking his things, his son still helping him so he’d get it done faster and have more Time to spend with his friend. After all, she’d agreed to stay down here for a week, and if she stayed any longer, it’d be a fuckin’ miracle. He’d to all but drop to his knees and beg her to come with him for even a week as it was, and he knew he was lucky to’ve gotten her to agree to that long.

Downstairs, Aerin sat on the travertine that made up the pool deck and covered patio, an ash tray settled on it next to her. She let her legs hang into the pool as she killed off her second smoke, beyond pissed that the lil girl Bobby’d talked about so highly could possibly be so rude–and right in front of him, too. If it hadn’t been for his son’s quick reflexes, she’d have no doubt wound up on her ass instead of pressed against him chest-to-back.

Hearing one of the back doors open didn’t even faze her as she made sure to crush out the entire cherry before neatly laying the butt to one side of the ash tray. It was most likely the bassist coming to check on her, if he’d managed to pry his excitable leech of a daughter loose from him yet. To be quite honest, she didn’t exactly care who it was at the moment–she just wanted to be left alone for a while.

“Hey–Aerin, right?”

Looking up outta the corner of her eye, the young woman saw Zoe standing next to her.

“Look, I just wanted to apologize for nearly knocking ya down upstairs,” she told her, moving to sit down next to her without flashing her ’cuz of the skirt she was wearing.

Aerin didn’t say a word, but rather reached for her smokes.

“I was excited ’cuz I hadn’t seen Daddy in over two months,” Zoe sighed. “I’ve always been a _Daddy’s girl,_ so I usually can’t help it.”

“Doesn’t mean you’ve to nearly knock a woman down to get to him,” the slightly older woman grumbled, a smoke hanging from her lips now.

She was met with a scrunched nose as she let out that first drag and snapped her Zippo shut again. “I dunno how Daddy can deal with ya being a smoker.”

“’Cuz I know he’s a former smoker, and I’ve Respect for that,” she said simply. “I don’t bother going near him without at least using body spray before I do, and I never smoke any closer than ten feet away from him.”

“Wait, really?” the younger woman asked, surprised.

“Zoe, I knew a lot about your dad before I ever met him–I grew up on his Music, after all,” Aerin answered with an eye roll.

“So _you’re_ the fan he met that Night and went to see in Nashville last week.”

Cocking a brow, the slightly older woman simply listened as she told her that Bobby’d said he’d decided to make a pit stop when he called to check in after he’d gotten to Ash’s. He hadn’t told his kids he was gonna do that, apparently to keep the Secret and be able to actually surprise her. A soft chuckle escaped her lips as she let out a drag and said that sounded like the wild and crazy bassist she’d gotten to know thus far.

Of course, Zoe wanted to know about her, and she answered damn near every question she was asked honestly. There were some topics she didn’t wanna get into–like how she’d wound up at that concert where they’d met in the first place. Aside from telling her that the younger bassist’d insisted on doing it so she’d get to see Mötley at least once and have better memories of seeing Poison, she refused to get into it. Naturally, the younger woman tried to push her, not realizing what a bad idea that was like her dad woulda–till she stubbed out her smoke and slid off the pool deck into the pool, effectively Ending the conversation as she drifted down to the bottom.

Unaware of Bobby and Zach finally coming outside, she held herself down on the bottom, her hands braced on the gunite to keep her from floating back up. She could hold her breath for a decent amount of Time, despite being a heavy chain smoker, so she wouldn’t come back up till she was damn good and ready to. That could certainly be long enough to scare just about anybody, so she wasn’t surprised to hear the bassist let out a concerned cry when he realized she was at the bottom of his pool–and not coming back up for Air.

Moments later after hearing a muffled splash, Aerin opened her eyes and was glad to find out it was actually a Saltwater pool as she saw him swimming down toward her. He was still as fully dressed as she was, his hair drifting behind him and making him look eerily similar to a Merman. The young woman simply smiled at him, making him look taken aback for a moment before he pointed upward.

“What the hell were ya doing, sweetheart?” Bobby asked, panting slightly once they’d Surfaced.

“Getting away from your daughter before I knocked _her_ in the pool instead,” she laughed. “I don’t think that woulda been very nice of a guest in your house.”

“Do I even wanna know what’d make ya wanna knock her in the pool when I just sent her down to apologize?” the bassist chuckled.

Shooting a look at Zoe, the young woman rolled her eyes as she answered. “Ya know how I am about being pushed to talk before I’m ready.”

_“Ahhhh,”_ he said, nodding slightly. “Yeah, I can see that making ya wanna knock even me in the pool.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” This was asked by Zoe, who still wore a startled look where she sat on the travertine.

“That when I clam up, don’t fuckin’ push my buttons, or I’ll let out my inner psychopathic serial killer,” the slightly older woman snapped. “There’s some shit that’s either too hard to talk about, or I simply don’t wanna–especially to a perfect stranger–so I don’t.”

Both kids looked startled to see her temper, their dad simply rubbing her back Comfortingly.

“Deep breath, sweetheart,” Bobby murmured as they treaded Water together. “She’s always been a curious kitten, so to speak.”

“Well, that’s one habit she’ll have to break with me, even if you and I don’t go beyond friends,” Aerin grumbled.

Knowing better than to push her buttons further, he just hugged her so he could rest his cheek against the top of her head. The young woman seemed content to Return the hug, letting him keep them afloat with his much more powerful legs as he continued treading Water. He couldn’t help but look down at her, his brow cocked as he Silently asked if she was okay, considering what’d happened upstairs in his bedroom.

Shrugging, she told him that her knees and hip were acting up a bit from how she’d twisted to try to avoid falling before Zach caught her. That was actually part of the reason she’d slid into the pool once she got fed up with his daughter being pushy–the buoyant effect of the Water helped with that kinda pain. It was something she’d learned as a teenager with one of her exes, although she refused to say how she’d come to that conclusion. Judging by the look in her eyes, it was another one of those topics that’d be better discussed with the utmost privacy, and he simply nodded his assent as he continued to hold her against him.

It wasn’t long before Aerin decided she was ready to get outta the pool so she could dry off and change her clothes. Since he was starting to get hungry, he let her go and made to follow her to the shallow End, which was actually the furthest from the back door that led into the great room. He figured that once they were dried off and changed, he’d take her out to dinner so they could have a bit of alone Time, something they hadn’t gotten much of at Ash’s. Besides, the bassist just wanted to take her out on an actual date, to prove to her that he was definitely boyfriend material.


	12. Eleven

_Nashville, Tennessee_

_October, 2021_

A lil over a Year later, Aerin was long since back at the home she still shared with Ash in Nashville, but things were a lot different than they’d been before. Her trip down to Miami for that lone week there with Bobby and the older bassist’s kids wasn’t the only one she’d taken, nor was she a single woman any longer like she’d been then.

The Silver Fox’d decided to take a chance shortly after his fifty-seventh birthday the previous Autumn, a chance he’d known could blow up in his face. He’d all but begged her to be his girlfriend on her second trip down there to see him, surprised when she’d actually agreed. It’d taken him a few moments to gather his wits enough to give her an ecstatic kiss, which’d quickly led to far more. Saying the house’d been quiet that Night woulda been a lie, and he’d been glad that the master suite was on the opposite side of it from his kids’ suites, to say the least.

Ever since then, they’d taken a trip to each other’s home either every month, or every other month, depending on his schedule. When it came to his interests outside Poison, he was actually just as damn good a chef as Ash, and he coulda easily worked his way up to sous chef over the Years. Instead, he’d decided to open up his own restaurant about twenty Years ago, and it’d been quite successful during all that Time.

If things got a lil too hectic in said restaurant, Bobby wouldn’t be able to come up to Nashville, no matter how much he wanted to and needed the break. That was when she’d try to go down to Miami instead, but they didn’t always get the Time together that they wanted, even then. Otherwise, they’d just agree to not seeing each other during a particular month, the plan being to spend two weeks together the next instead of a single week. They somehow always managed to find the proper Balance and make their long-distance relationship work, if only ’cuz the bassist realized just how hard it was to win the young woman’s Love and Trust.

“Hey, Aerin–get your ass out here!”

“What’s up, Ash?” she called from her bedroom in response to her roommate’s words.

“Just get out here, and trust me when I say you’ll like whatcha see,” the younger bassist laughed.

“All right, all right,” Aerin chuckled. “At least lemme get clothes on before I’ve to knock your eyes onto the back of your head for staring again!”

“Yeah, that might be a good idea–more than ya know,” he responded.

Wondering just what Ash was up to, considering his choice phrasing, the young woman quickly pulled on her clothes since she’d quite literally gotten outta the shower. Since she’d already been otherwise dressed, she quickly ran her hairbrush through her hair before heading out toward the great room, not expecting what she was about to find.

Not only was Bobby standing there with the younger bassist, but so was the rest of Poison–that included even former members, Richie Kotzen and Blues Saraceno–as well as his kids. Squealing like a child, she ran over to him, careful not to bump into anyone as she did so and flung her arms around him. Due to things getting a bit crazy at the restaurant–or so he’d said–she’d thought she wouldn’t get to see him for her birthday. She’d thought she wouldn’t get to see him till closer to his, even though that was only about three weeks away.

“Hey there, sweetheart!” he chuckled as he Returned the hug, then gave her a sound kiss. “Happy birthday!”

“Ya cunning Silver Fox, you,” Aerin laughed, playfully smacking his chest. “Ya just lemme _think_ ya weren’t gonna get to come up here again till closer to your own birthday, didn’tcha?”

“Hey, I gotta keep ya on your toes somehow!” the bassist shot back with a grin.

“I’d say showing up outta the blue–and with every member of Poison that there’s ever been–is a good way to do it!” she agreed with another laugh.

“Speaking of,” Rikki started, grinning.

_“Happy birthday, Aerin!”_ they all cried in unison.

“Thanks, guys,” the young woman said. “Even to Richie and Blues, which’s definitely an unexpected surprise.”

“Bobby told us how some of your top favorite Poison songs actually came from the albums we were featured on,” Blues chuckled.

“He wanted us to help surprise ya, so we decided to at least temporarily let go of anything from the Past–good or bad–and give him a hand,” Richie added with a chuckle of his own.

“He and Ash’re such assholes about wanting to surprise me, even though they know I generally don’t like it,” Aerin told them. “But hey, I’ll take _this_ kinda surprise any Day of the week, if it means getting to see my man when I thought I wasn’t gonna get to for a while longer.”

Laughing, Ash said they prolly oughta start showing them to guest rooms so they could put their stuff down, if nothing else. Bobby already knew the way to her room–which he’d started sleeping in with her after they got together–so he led three of the guys down the hall with him. He told them only one outta the entire group was gonna be lucky enough to get a room to themselves, so they’d better pick who they wanted to bunk with wisely.

Rikki and CC Ended up in the room across the hall that his girlfriend had been offered the Day she’d moved in, which sported twin beds on either wall. That left Richie, Blues, and Bret to figure out who outta them was gonna bunk together, the third outta that group getting a guest room to himself. In the End, they decided it was best that the brunettes bunk together, ’cuz Bret still didn’t like Richie after nearly thirty Years, considering what’d led to his eventual firing from the band while they were on tour in late-1993. It’d be easier to keep any fights from breaking out over one of them breathing on the other wrong, or something equally stupid, that way.

That led to the younger bassist leading said brunettes to one of the guest rooms in the basement, which was outfitted with another pair of twin beds. The young woman led Bret to the final guest room on the other side of the basement, where he’d get to be alone in a Queen bed. Everybody quickly set their bags down so they could get back upstairs, all of them eager to get started on the party they planned to throw the birthday girl. If she didn’t have a helluva Night–especially with what Bobby’d up his sleeves for after-hours, so to speak–they were doing something wrong.

“Hey, there!” Ash said, having gone to answer the door again when he heard the doorbell. “Glad ya could make it, Aidan!”

“Hey, Ash!” everyone heard from the kitchen. “Didn’t have to ask me to help surprise the birthday girl twice!”

Heading for the foyer, said birthday girl seemed highly surprised to see a face she recognized as easily as she recognized those of the men surrounding her. “Aidan!”

“Hey, Aerin!” the young woman just now let into the house answered, grabbing her for a hug. “Happy birthday, girl!”

“Thanks!” she laughed, hugging the ginger Tom Keifer look-alike. “I didn’t think you’d get to come down from Missouri any more than I thought my man was gonna get to come up from Florida!”

“Oh, really?” Aidan chuckled. “And just who’s this man ya all but sing the praises, but won’t reveal the identity of?”

Grinning like a Cheshire Cat, she led the other young woman into the kitchen, knowing she’d be surprised to see the entirety of Poison there. Just like she thought, the ginger’s mouth dropped open, her full, pouty lips forming a pink _O_ of surprise that just got even bigger when she grabbed Bobby around the waist. Laughing at how her friend’s Lighter brown eyes widened in utter shock, he gladly Returned the hug he was given.

Aerin couldn’t help a devious grin as she looked back over her shoulder at her friend, using the fact that she was facing him to get away with being a perv. The older bassist couldn’t help gasping and jumping, and everyone cracked up as they realized what’d happened when he groaned. It wasn’t lost on any of them, ’cuz they were intelligent and experienced enough to know when a man’d been grabbed.

It didn’t take long for them to get the birthday party underway, everyone giving her a host of various presents they knew she’d love. Everything from copies of various albums she’d grown up on or wanted as they were released by some of her favorite Modern bands, more things to add to her Pagan collection–really anything that coincided with her interests. One of the presents she got that she seemed to love in particular with the acoustic bass her boyfriend had bought her since it was one of the things on her Wish list for quite a while. He’d paid quite the pretty penny to basically combine three of her favorites in a single custom bass, but he knew it’d be well worth it.

Since she’d decided she liked her Schecter for an electic bass, but Ash’s Dean for an acoustic one, Bobby’d gone to Dean Guitars to make this happen. She’d seen the bass version of their Dave Mustaine signature _Mako Glory,_ which was made to look like the Sound hole was a set of claw marks instead of the standard Circle. The problem was that she hadn’t liked the War-torn American flag finish to its solid Spruce top enough to wanna buy it as-is.

Aerin loved the satin crimson burst finish of her Schecter _Raiden,_ but wanted it to look more like the trans blue _Exotica_ from Dean. When one added the _Mako Glory_ Sound hole–which she loved the Sound of more than anything–it was quite the tall order to fill. It was essentially three different basses from two different companies all thrown into a blender, but he’d made sure it happened. He’d do just about anything for his girlfriend, especially when it came to her birthday and _Yule,_ which she’d gotten him to celebrate with her last Year.

“Bobby–ya didn’t have to do this!” the young woman cried, looking up at him with tears in her eyes.

“I didn’t do it ’cuz I _had_ to–I did it ’cuz I _wanted_ to,” Bobby told her. “There’s a big difference there, sweetheart.”

“This had to’ve cost a fortune!” she said. “Ya basically combined all three of my favorite acoustic basses into one!”

“Yeah, I did,” the bassist chuckled. “And seeing the way your face lit up when ya clapped eyes on it makes every penny worth it and then some.”

Everyone in the room laughed as she practically dove atop him to give him a sound kiss, a couple Joyous tears that he gently thumbed away running down her cheeks.

“Jeez, girl–don’t tell me you’re getting so Emotional ’cuz you’re pregnant!” CC laughed.

“I damn well better not be, or Bobby’s got some ’splaining to do!” Aerin chuckled. “’Cuz I won’t let him touch me when I know there’s even the slightest chance of that happening.”

“Damn, seriously?” Blues asked curiously.

“Well, I don’t want kids, if it can be avoided,” she answered with a shrug. “And I think we all know that rubbers aren’t the most reliable contraceptive on the Planet.”

“Yeah, that’s definitely true,” Rikki agreed with a nod. “Hell, they’re not always the most reliable for other things, either when ya think about it.”

“Therefore, if I am–well, he can explain how he managed to fuck me without waking me up when I was fertile, ’cuz that one’s escaping me,” the young woman said.

“Hasn’t happened, sweetheart,” Bobby chuckled. “You’re too easy to wake up once things take a dirty turn.”

“I thought so,” Aerin told him with a grin. “Nothing gets past me, and ya know it.”

“Too well, I do,” he agreed with a grin of his own.

The party continued till late that Night, but they weren’t able to be too loud after about nine o’ clock ’cuz of the neighbors. It was a Thor’s Day Night, after all, and not everyone in the neighborhood had the luxury of staying up till whenever they felt like going to bed. None of them wanted the cops called on them, so they’d to tone it down once the local noise ordinance kicked in, or that’d surely happen.

After everyone else’d headed off to bed, Aidan choosing to bunk in the younger bassist’s room since he offered up his bed, the couple headed outside. They’d since built a gazebo where the young woman’d originally made her Sacred Circle so she’d have shelter if it started Raining or something while she was in said Sacred Space. But it was certainly a luxurious gazebo, considering it was big enough for them to hang a Queen bed from the ceiling of it with a small ceiling fan Centered over the bed. It was where she and her boyfriend spent a lotta their Time during the warmer months, as cozy and private as it was.

In said gazebo, they crawled onto the bed, content to just lay there and cuddle as it swung gently from their movements and the Breeze that was blowing. It was kinda like being on a giant, far more comfortable swing since it was hung with some seriously sturdy chain from eye bolts anchored in six-by-six beams. There was no way this thing was coming down, no matter how wild they got–and if it ever did, that meant they’d both put on about three hundred pounds.

Bobby couldn’t help himself since he hadn’t seen her in nearly a month and was still just a man, no matter his profession. He took his chance to roll her onto her back, gently pinning her as he knelt between her legs once she spread them enough to make room for him. A soft sigh drifted up from her lips as he kissed her, slowly deepening it till it was heated and furious. It didn’t seem that his girlfriend was gonna try to stop him tonight, and he was glad since he was needy and knew she’d never actually gotten birthday sex–which was about to Change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so to give a better idea of the acoustic bass I was trying to describe as what Bobby bought Aerin for her birthday, here's links to pics of the three instruments I based it off of. The first is the "Mako Glory," which comes as both an acoustic bass AND an acoustic guitar–the second is the trans blue version of the "Exotica." Both of those're sold by Dean Guitars unless they've taken them off their website so that they're no longer actually for sale.
> 
> The final one's the "Hellraiser Extreme" from Schecter. It's got the same finish–just with a lot more red visible–than the "Raiden" that I actually own, hence why I like the Color so much. It's definitely been taken off Schecter's site, 'cuz it's now locked in what they call "The Vault"–and so's the bass I own, for that matter.
> 
> Hopefully this helps with Visualizing what I was trying to describe, for those who've never seen any of these before. I kinda figured it'd be pretty easy to just do this instead of answer any questions that'd lead to this route later.  
> ~Angel
> 
> Link to "Mako Glory"–https://www.deanguitars.com/images/productimages/makobglory/makobglory.png
> 
> Link to "Exotica"–https://www.deanguitars.com/images/productimages/eqabatbl/eqabatbl.png
> 
> Link to "Hellraiser Extreme"–https://www.schecterguitars.com/images/store/product/HELLRAISER%20EXTREME%204%20CRBS%20TILT.png


	13. Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I don't normally do this kinda thing, I'ma warn readers now–DON'T READ THIS CHAPTER, IF YOU'VE LESS THAN A CAST IRON STOMACH! It gets pretty graphic–well, as graphic as I dare–with a fairly rare medical condition! Due to the Nature of this medical condition, I'd suggest skipping this chapter and just waiting for the next one, if ya don't think ya can handle it!  
> ~Angel

Shortly after Dawn the next Morn, Bobby and Aerin woke to the Sun just Beginning to rise over the horizon to greet them. Both wanted to go back to sleep since they’d been up so late, but both also needed to take a piss–and it’d gotten a bit chilly overnight. Deciding it was better to head back into the house, they started searching for their clothes, which’d gotten thrown all over the gazebo like a closet’d thrown up.

Once they were dressed, they made up the bed hanging from the gazebo ceiling so it actually looked neat and inviting once again. They were both glad the young woman miraculously had her keys on her, figuring that Ash’d locked the back door outta habit before he went to bed. If not for having her keys, they’d be having to wake someone up by banging on the door, hopefully before any accidents.

Much to their surprise, the back door swung open before Aerin could even sleepily fumble up the right key to get them in. Looking up, they saw a sleepy Richie standing in front of them, and they quietly thanked him as they closed the door behind them. The young woman scurried off to the bathroom first, knowing how her boyfriend usually was first thing in the Morn and not wanting to have her poor nose assaulted. He couldn’t help a chuckle, even though that made his need to go all the more urgent, but he was thankfully able to hold it till she Returned.

“So, what on Earth were ya doing in the back yard?” Richie was asking her as he headed off to her suite.

“Ash and I built a gazebo in the spot where I used to have my Sacred Circle,” she answered, yawning as she started coffee.

“Sacred Circle?” the brunette asked, cocking a brow.

Aerin quickly explained what she meant, hoping it made sense since she was still mostly asleep.

“All right, I think I get it,” he told her with a nod.

“Well, the gazebo’s big enough that we decided to hang a Queen bed from its ceiling with a ceiling fan Centered over it,” the young woman explained. “Bobby and I spend a lotta Nights out there when he’s up here, if it’s warm enough.”

“Just like being outdoors, or for something else?” Richie chuckled.

“Both, if I’m honest,” she laughed. “Not that it really matters–Ash can’t hear what we do from the other side of the house, and if he can, he’s never said anything.”

“I guess that’s a good thing, no matter how ya look at it,” the brunette agreed.

Aerin held up a hand to shut him up when she thought she heard something, her brow furrowing. “Did ya hear that, or have I lost my mind?”

Listening closely, both heard what sounded like a pained cry from down the hall toward her bedroom–and it didn’t sound like Rikki or CC. Worried about her boyfriend, the young woman took off running, uncaring of whether he followed behind her or not. Bobby never made noises like that, even when his neck near his old injury was killing him or he’d a migraine that was making his head throb.

In her bedroom, she and Richie heard what sounded like whimpering from behind her bathroom door, which was punctuated by a sob every few seconds. Now she was really worried and even starting to get terrified as she made her way over to the bathroom door. Whatever was going on in there wasn’t good, judging by the noises the bassist was making, and she damn well knew it. Finding the door locked–as per usual with either of them–she raised her fist to knock on it, hoping she’d get an intelligible, if muffled answer.

“Bobby–ya all right in there, love?” Aerin asked.

“F-Fuck me,” was all she heard in response, and it sounded like he was in agony.

“Bobby, open the door,” she demanded.

“C-Can’t,” he sobbed. “K-Kick it d-down.”

Turning to look behind her, she was too relieved to see Richie’d followed her to be freaked out about him being in her bedroom. “Do it, Richie–I’m not strong enough to kick one of these doors down.”

“Ya sure about that?” the guitarist asked uncertainly. “I mean, it’s Ash’s house and all.”

“He can kill me for it later,” the young woman said. “Bobby never sounds like this, so something’s wrong, and I’ll go get one of the neighbors and their chainsaw, if I’ve gotta.”

Nodding his assent, he beckoned her outta the way as he got into the proper position to at least give an attempt without breaking his foot. It took him a couple tries, but he managed to get the door to fly open so hard it slammed into the wall behind it, no doubt leaving a hole in the drywall. Aerin didn’t care about holes that’d to be patched up later, though, if it meant getting to her boyfriend and finding out what was wrong with him.

The sight that met her eyes was one that was both concerning and pitiful, and she couldn’t help a gasp as the guitarist followed her in. Bobby was still on the toilet, his jeans and boxers around his ankles, but his face was as red as a Fire truck and tears were pouring down it. He was clearly in a lotta pain, but she thought the redness was also from trying to bite back blood-curdling screams.

“Love, what’s wrong?” the young woman asked, making him look up at her.

“D-Dunno,” he sobbed, gritting his teeth so hard she heard them grinding. “F-Feels like s-somebody tried t-to use T-Tabasco sauce as l-lube, a-and a c-colony of F-Fire ants invaded m-my a-ass.”

“Wow, great way to make me stay away from spicy food for Life,” Richie chuckled, trying to inject at least a lil humor into the situation.

“Richie, help me get him up from here,” she said. “I doubt he can get up on his own, if he’s in that much pain.”

Nodding again, the guitarist moved to grab Bobby so he could pull him up and against his chest.

_“Ahhhh!”_ he screamed, biting the poor guy’s shoulder as soon as his face was next to it.

“I’m sorry if I hurtcha, love, but I gotta be able to see,” Aerin told him, moving behind him.

Flipping the lid shut, she took a seat on the toilet as she reached back to flush it so she could rid her bathroom of at least part of the odor filling it. Poor Richie looked like he was biting back a gag so he wouldn’t cause her boyfriend to fall, then like he was thankful for her action. Shooting him a thankful smile of her own, she turned her attention to her boyfriend’s lower half, her eyes widening at what she saw–which wasn’t good.

Managing to look over his shoulder without jostling him, the guitarist’s eyes widened just as much as he saw the oddest and prolly grossest sight he’d ever seen. He wasn’t too sure what the hell was hanging outta Bobby’s ass, but he was pretty sure that whatever it was, it wasn’t supposed to be there. In fact, he was pretty sure it was supposed to be up inside his body, not protruding from it so grotesquely. If that was the case, it was no Wonder he was in enough pain to be screaming and crying like a baby, even though he was a grown man.

“What the hell’s going on in here?”

Looking up, Aerin saw her roommate standing in the bathroom doorway. “Go get some of Bobby’s PJ britches–or even yours, for all I care!”

“Um, why?” he asked, confused since he’d obviously just woken up.

“Just do it, Ashley!” the young woman snapped. “’Cuz if I’m right, we need to get him as cleaned up as possible and to the ER.”

“Am I losing my mind, or did Bobby just literally shit his guts out?” Richie asked, finally able to form words again.

“Unless I’m mistaken, the answer’s yes,” she told him, which made even Ash’s eyes widen.

“Dear fuckin’ God,” the younger bassist breathed. “Get him cleaned up, if you’re able to–I’ll be back in a minute with those PJ britches!”

“Thanks, Ash!” Aerin called behind him as she moved to soak a rag.

She wasn’t surprised that her boyfriend still screamed into Richie’s shoulder, which he was still biting, no matter how gentle she tried to be. Before she’d left North Carolina, the same thing’d happened to one of her mother’s friends–and the woman’d immediately gotten a dose of the strongest painkiller they’d on hand. That painkiller was even stronger than Morphine, but they’d deemed her pain level and condition worthy of a dose of it right off the bat.

Once she’d gotten him cleaned up as much as she could without causing even more pain or damage, the young woman managed to get him to step outta his jeans and boxers. Bobby still howled with agony every Time he moved a muscle, but managed to do as she instructed him to. It wasn’t long before the younger bassist Returned with a pair of PJ britches, which they’d to help him step into.

Now that he was as dressed as she dared allow him to be, Aerin got the two guys with her to work in tandem to get her out to the Tahoe Ash’d bought her that Summer. There was no way the older bassist was gonna be able to sit down like this, so the only thing she could think of was to lay down both rows of back seats and basically shove him in on his front from the hatch. She wasn’t quite sure how they’d stop him from being thrown into the side of the truck when she’d to make a turn, but they’d get that figured out in a few minutes. Right now, they’d to see if he’d even be able to walk as far as the driveway–if not, they’d be forced to call EMS for him.

Thankfully, Bobby proved to be able to walk, as long as he’d Richie and Ash on either side of him as living crutches. Granted, that Changed by the Time he reached the foyer, where his legs buckled under his weight from the pain he was in. By that Time, his kids, Rikki, and Bret were all awake, and they came running as soon as they heard his pained cry. The men hanging on to him just barely avoided dropping him or going down with him, both grunting with the effort of trying to right him again since he was in too much pain to help them now.

“What the hell’s wrong with Dad?” Zach demanded, his sister gasping when she saw him.

“Trust me when I say ya prolly don’t wanna know, kiddo,” Richie said, grunting again as he readjusted him slightly from his left side.

“Fuck, don’t bounce me like that!” the older bassist screamed.

“Sorry, Bobby–I was about to drop ya, if I didn’t,” he responded with a wince. “Let’s try this again and see if we can’t getcha closer to Aerin’s truck, _hmm?”_

“Fuck, I dunno that I’ma even get out the front door,” Bobby sobbed.

“Ya two move to get his torso,” Rikki piped up. “Bret, get his other leg–I’ve this one well enough.”

“So, we’re gonna carry him?” the frontman asked.

“Looks like we’ve no other choice, if he can’t even walk,” he answered, nodding.

Richie and Ash moved so they’d be able to pick him up like a piece of deck lumber they were gonna slide into the back of the truck.

“Trust fall from hell on three,” the drummer said. “One…two…”

The older bassist screamed again as he let himself go forward, the four men with him grunting as they managed to pick him up.

“Zoe, get the door!” Bret said, unable to help snapping.

Startled into movement, the younger woman quickly unlocked and opened the front door.

The quartet of men grunted as they repositioned themselves just enough to get out the door without anyone getting hurt. Those who didn’t already know what was going on were disturbed by the bulge in the seat of Bobby’s PJ britches, but there was no Time to ask questions. He needed to get to the hospital, and there apparently wasn’t enough Time to be waiting on an ambulance to show up.

By the Time they got him outside, Aerin’d backed her truck up to the portion of the driveway that stretched in front of the door. She climbed out one of the back doors from laying the seats down and spreading a memory foam mattress pad she’d found in the garage over them. He was no doubt gonna be uncomfortable, no matter what they did till he was given painkillers, but that didn’t mean he’d to lay on those hard seat backs with no cushioning. In fact, he seemed grateful when he managed to lift his head enough to see what she’d done, a slight but pained smile crossing his face.

Richie and Ash got themselves positioned so they could essentially slide him in with him hovering a couple inches over the memory foam. Zach ran around to the other side of the truck and crawled into the back door, motioning for the young woman to do the same. Nodding, she got herself ready to help pull his torso in once they got him in as far as they could without losing their grip and making him eat the driveway for breakfast.

It took a few minutes, but the six of them managed to get him far enough into the truck that the hatch could be closed without his feet getting caught in it. Once he was in, his son closed the back door he’d been pulling him in from and headed around to the back. He motioned to the drummer, telling him the only way they were likely to essentially seat belt him in’d be to lay on either side of him. Keeping themselves braced against the truck, they could act as barriers to keep him from being thrown into it when making turns. Not only that, but as his next-of-kin, Zach was also one of his Powers of Attorney and in a far better state of mind than his baby sister.

“Daddy,” Zoe whimpered, tears running down her cheeks.

“We’re gonna get him help, sis,” the youngest man assured her. “I’ll call ya when I’ve any kinda update, and if I don’t, I’m sure Aerin will.”

“Damn right, I will,” the young woman yelled from where she was climbing into the driver’s seat. “Hell, I’ll prolly be updating Ash, who can pass it on to her just as well.”

“Works for me,” Zach said loud enough for her to hear. “Let me and Rikki get settled on either side of him, and we’ll be good to go.”

“Ten-four, good buddy!” she responded, cranking her truck again.

“Fuck, this is killing me,” Bobby whimpered.

“Just try to take deep breaths, Dad,” he told him as he settled next to him.

“In and out, dude,” Rikki agreed, gently rubbing his upper back. “Just what the hell happened to him, anywhore?”

“Unless I’m mistaken, he quite literally shit his guts out this Morn,” Aerin answered from the front seat as she put the truck in gear and took off as slowly and gently as she could.

“Damn, seriously?” the drummer asked, Zach’s eyes widening and jaw dropping. “That can actually happen?”

“Well, not _all_ of his guts,” she clarified. “I can’t remember the actual term off the top of my head at the moment, but pretty much the same thing can happen to just about any pelvic organ.”

_“Day-um,”_ the youngest man managed to say.

Humming her agreement, the young woman aimed her truck for Saint Thomas West Hospital, which was about ten minutes away from the house. It was certainly the closest that wasn’t a childrens’ or psychiatric hospital, and prolly their best bet for getting Bobby help faster. They’d make the call whether to send him to Nashville General, which was still twelve minutes away at best, and that was as long as traffic on four-forty and forty didn’t get snarled.

Every bump in the road that they hit made the poor bassist scream in agony, but there was nothing she could do to help him beyond this. If she weren’t able to compartmentalize so well, she’d have been unable to drive at all from crying as hard as he was. As it stood, Aerin knew she’d break down and start crying once she was no longer needed as a vital part of their oddball lil team.


	14. Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so anybody who skipped the last chapter may wanna skip this one, too. It's not quite as graphic, but still contains a few descriptions that may be a bit much for some folks' stomachs to handle.  
> ~Angel

In the surgical waiting area of Saint Thomas West Hospital, Aerin’d long since broken down and sobbed into Rikki’s chest like a baby once she no longer needed to keep it together. She’d kept her shit together so well for so long that even Zach was amazed by the Strength she possessed, and he thought it was no Wonder his dad had fallen in Love with her. He’d never seen someone essentially have a total Emotional disconnect like she’d done, then just break down like a crumbling foundation letting a house collapse.

Almost as soon as they’d managed to get him into the ER, Bobby’d been taken into a trauma bay when the charge nurse saw how red his face was. Seeing the veins in his throat standing out so prominently told her that his blood pressure was well beyond the Beginning of hypertensive levels. Despite other patients in _that_ waiting area, this man needed to be seen _yesterday,_ as far as she was concerned.

He’d gotten a definitive diagnosis of a rectal prolapse, which was when the rectum essentially came loose from the interior of the body and basically fell outta the victim’s ass. It was more common in women who were already in their sixties, most men that it happened to being forty or younger, but it could still happen to anybody at just about any Time. The most common cause of it was simply straining too hard to go to the bathroom, usually when one suffered chronic constipation.

What surprised all three of them was when the surgeon brought down for a second opinion told them that this could be recurrent. Bobby’d likely been suffering from this for quite a while, but had been able to push his prolapsed rectum back in on his own. Over Time, not seeking treatment–whether he knew what was wrong or not–woulda made it easier for something as stupid-simple as a cough or sneeze to make it happen. At this point, his anal sphincter’d stretched enough to allow his entire rectum to drop out, which was why he’d been in so much pain. He’d no doubt needed surgery, ’cuz not only was there no pushing that much tissue back in, but it needed to be reattached to his abdominal cavity.

“I’ve never seen anybody keep their shit together, then break down quite like Aerin did,” Zach was saying. He was simply too worried about his dad to sleep, not to mention trying to pass on any updates the surgical team came out to give them.

“Neither’ve I, kiddo,” the drummer agreed. He’d stretched out on one of the couches, the young woman settled on her side between his legs so she could stretch out across his chest.

“I gotta give her kudos, though,” he told him. “Dad prolly wouldn’t already be in the OR, if she hadn’t kept it together like she did.”

“No shit–literally, in his case,” Rikki chuckled. “Whyddaya think _I_ took a page from her play book?”

“Wait, really?” the younger Dall asked, his eyes widening.

“Seriously, Zach,” he answered, nodding. “I saw how Calm she was being, which was more efficient than doing otherwise and keeping everybody else from freakin’ out as bad on top of it.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s a pretty good reason to steal a page outta Aerin’s play book,” Zach agreed with a chuckle of his own. “We’d have all prolly been useless, if we hadn’t.”

“And useless isn’t what your dad needed,” the drummer told him. “He needed us to keep it together and get him help since he obviously couldn’t on his own.”

Their conversation was Ended when a nurse walked into the waiting area and called out, _Friends and family of Robert Kuykendall?_ Both men sat up and waved a hand at her, Rikki gently shaking the young woman sleeping on him awake as she walked over. Fingers were immediately crossed as they prayed that whatever she’d come out to tell them was good, if only so the younger man could call his sister or Ash and update everybody back at the house.

All three of them were relieved to hear that the surgery’d gone well and he was currently being brought down to the recovery room they Intended to put him in. He was gonna remain admitted for at least a Day–maybe two–depending on how he did was the anesthesia wore off completely and he was able to wake up, provided no complications arose.

In order to pull his rectum back up to where it belonged, they’d needed to do an open abdominal surgery since they needed more room to work. Once it was back in place where it belonged, the surgeon’d anchored it back into place by suturing it to his pelvic wall where it belonged. However, there were a few very serious risks he’d have to watch out for till the Day he dropped dead, and it’d certainly help for his friends and family to know what those risks were. They could keep an eye and ear out–whether he wanted them to or not–to prevent this from happening again, or at least get him help even quicker than they’d managed to this Time.

Even Zach paid strict attention as she listed off those risks, the worst of which seemed to be a bowel obstruction, infection, something called a fistula, and the recurrence of a prolapsed rectum. Confused, the younger man asked what on Earth a fistula was since he’d never heard of it before any more than it appeared Rikki and Aerin had. The nurse explained that it was essentially a connection between two parts of the abdominal cavity, and they could happen Naturally or due to surgery. In this case, Bobby’s rectum could wind up connected to his urethra, which could cause a couple different things.

“So basically, he could wind up pissing his shit as much as shitting his piss?” the younger man asked, trying not to laugh since he knew this was serious.

“That’s just one possibility,” the nurse answered, nodding. “It’s not as likely to happen, if he doesn’t already have a history of such a thing, or any other risk factors for it.”

“I don’t think he does,” he told her, shaking his head. “Then again, the only surgery he’s ever had that I know of was nowhere near his abdomen.”

She cocked a brow in Curiosity.

“Back in ’01, Bobby’d to have a diskectomy and spinal fusion,” Rikki explained. “He herniated a couple discs in his neck–I think they said C-five to C-seven–in a motorcycle wreck in the late-eighties.”

“Yeah, that’s definitely nowhere near the abdomen,” the nurse agreed. “And if he didn’t have any complications with that surgery, I don’t see why he would with this one unless there’s a Health condition we dunno about.”

“So, when can we see him?” Zach asked, now biting his lip nervously.

“I’ll go back and see if they’ve got him settled yet,” she answered. “Y’all can each come see him for a few minutes, but only family’re allowed to stay overnight.”

“What about Aerin?” the younger man asked, gesturing to the young woman. “She’s his girlfriend, so couldn’t she switch places with my sister, if Zoe can’t handle it?”

“I’ll see what the doctor says, but I don’t think that’ll be a problem,” she answered. “Any other friends’ll have to see him during normal visiting hours.”

Nodding, he turned to wrap the young woman in a Bear-hug, which Rikki almost immediately joined him on. From the looks of things, his dad was gonna be just fine, even if he was in quite a bit of pain for a while during his recovery. Hopefully, he wouldn’t have a recurrence of this in the Future, but even if he did, as long as there wasn’t too much scar tissue or some other complication, at least they knew this could be fixed and he’d survive.

It wasn’t long before that same nurse Returned to the waiting area and beckoned to them, which made them get up and follow her. As she led them to the bassist’s recovery room, she told them that the doctor’d said Aerin could most certainly switch out with his daughter in the event that the younger woman couldn’t handle seeing her daddy like this and needed to leave. He was still feeling the effects of the general anesthetic he was given, so he was mostly asleep, but he’d crack open his eyes and take a quick look around, if he heard a loud enough noise. She warned them that he may or may not realize they were there, and prolly wouldn’t remember anything they said to him later on.

Once in the recovery room, the sight they saw was one that was both a bit sweet and downright pitiful for the man they knew and loved. Bobby was propped up from having the back of his bed raised and a couple pillows behind him, his chin on his chest as he slept. He’d a cannula shoved up his nose to give him a bit of extra oxygen, IVs and other tubes and wires protruding from under his hospital gown in various places. At least the heart monitor he was on beeped quietly in a steady rhythm, reassuring them he was still alive as much as his breathing did.

“Oh, Bobby,” the young woman whispered, gently grabbing his hand as she settled in a chair next to his bed.

_“Mmm_ – _hmm?”_ he hummed softly, cracking open his eyes as he felt that gentle squeeze. “A-Aerin?”

“Yeah, it’s me, love,” Aerin answered, managing a smile. “How’re ya feeling?”

“Tired,” the bassist answered. “Like I got hit by a bus.”

“I think that’s kinda normal, Dad,” Zach chuckled, gently grabbing and squeezing his other hand.

_“Mmm_ –hey, son,” Bobby said, turning his head slightly to smile at the younger man.

“Rikki’s here, too,” he told him, looking toward the drummer.

“Figured I’d come see ya before I took Aerin’s truck back to Ash’s and updated everyone else,” Rikki chuckled, gently squeezing his toes.

“Everybody else?” the bassist asked, looking confused.

“Ya pretty much woke everyone but Blues and CC up this Morn, dude,” he laughed, careful to keep his volume down. “And if it wasn’t you, it was when Richie kicked Aerin’s bathroom door down for her so she could check on ya.”

_“Ohhhh,”_ Bobby said, nodding as he at least halfway got what he’d told him. “Tell ’em I said sorry ’bout that.”

“They already know ya didn’t mean to,” the drummer reassured him. “Everybody who was awake saw your face and how your knees buckled in the foyer–they know ya couldn’t keep quiet, even if you’d wanted to.”

“Just wanna sleep now while I can,” he murmured, his words Beginning to slur a bit. “So tired, I could sleep for a week.”

“Get some rest, then,” Rikki told him. “We’ll all come to see ya a couple at a Time once visiting hours start and you’re actually awake.”

_“…’kay,”_ the bassist murmured, managing to get his hand back from his son so he could wave to him. “Bye-bye.”

None of them could help laughing softly at how cute his drug-induced silliness was, but they were just thankful he was still alive and not in pain. Aerin handed over her keys, making sure the drummer knew how to use the built-in GPS in case he didn’t know how to get back to Ash’s house. The address was already programmed into it, so as long as he knew how to use it, he shouldn’t have any problems getting back without getting lost.

After Rikki’d left and the room’d gotten quiet again, Bobby looked up at his girlfriend with an adorable pout on his face. Knowing him as well as she did, she couldn’t help a chuckle as she leaned forward, gladly giving him the kiss she knew he wanted. She was glad to hear him hum happily and sigh as they Ended said kiss, allowing her to sit back down so she could grab his hand again.

Zach merely watched the exchange quietly, unable to help a smile as he watched his dad settle down and go back to sleep afterward. If he’d ever had any doubts about the young woman being the best thing that’d ever happened to him before, despite their age difference, he definitely didn’t now. He couldn’t have possibly picked a better woman for the bassist to wind up dating, ’cuz while she might be a bitch with a thorny exterior at first, she clearly loved and cared about him to the depth of her very Soul, and that was the kinda woman Bobby needed.


	15. Fourteen

Two Days later, Bobby was finally discharged from the hospital after meeting his doctor’s top condition for release. He’d to prove that he could get up outta bed and make it to the bathroom with at least the help of his son or a friend, and he’d to prove that he was able to take a shit without any problems. The latter condition for being discharged was absolutely mortifying, but considering what’d landed him in the hospital to Begin with, he totally understood it.

Once he was able to meet those two conditions, his surgeon–Dr. Raymond West–was more than glad to sign off on his discharge paperwork. But instead of going back home to Florida, he’d already made other plans for what to do once he left the hospital. He wanted to be closer to his surgeon than not, just in case he’d a sudden recurrence before he Healed properly, so he’d decided on talking to Ash about crashing at his place. Thankfully, the younger bassist was more than willing to let him, but warned that he’d be able to help with his care only so much. After all, he’d his clothing line and what he was working on as his second solo release to deal with, and that took up a lotta his Time.

Zach and Zoe were both more than willing to stick around, rather than going back to Florida once they talked to their bosses. He’d need them to stick around for at least two weeks, and after that was when he oughta need minimal, if any help. Dr. West’d told him that most patients in need of this surgery were usually able to Return to their normal Lives within four-to-six weeks. In the meantime, he wanted the bassist to spend a week on soft foods before switching a very fiber-rich diet to help prevent constipation.

“I also wantcha drinking plenty of Water, which goes for pretty much any patient I get,” he told him. “Juice’s also acceptable, but I want the amount of caffeine kept to a minimum.”

Aerin couldn’t help a chuckle as he looked like he wanted to argue. “Do ya wanna dehydrate yourself so much thatcha wind up constipated and shitting your guts out again ’cuz of all the coffee, love?”

His eyes widened when she said that, and he shook his head vehemently. “No, thanks. The coffee isn’t worth going through this a second Time, ’cuz this already hurts bad enough!”

“Then Water and juice, it is,” the young woman giggled. “Hell, I’ll even suffer a few migraines till I get used to running on no caffeine, if it means not teasing ya with it.”

Dr. West couldn’t help cocking a brow at his patient’s girlfriend.

“I’ve suffered from migraines since I was in the single-digits,” Aerin explained. “Unlike most folks who trigger ’em by drinking caffeine, mine go away when I keep myself hopped up on it. It’s the cutting it out that’ll trigger ’em more, especially if I go cold-turkey.”

“But you’re still willing to go through that for Mr. Kuykendall?” he asked, amazed by her Selflessness.

“Love’ll make a woman–or a man–do some strange shit sometimes,” the young woman laughed.

“And if they’re not in Love, I must not know what that Emotion is,” Zach chuckled.

The surgeon was glad to see his patient’d such a strong support system, ’cuz he was gonna need it to get through his recovery. Even if all he needed was the mental and Emotional support, it was still better to have more than one person he could rely on, rather than winding up completely alone with no one to help him.

Once he’d been officially discharged, a nurse wheeled him downstairs to the exit while his girlfriend headed on out to get her truck. He’d chosen to go home in a pair of PJ britches and a hoodie, ’cuz he couldn’t care less about his appearance at the moment. Not only that, but his PJ britches were looser on his belly than a pair of jeans, especially ones he needed a belt with. As sore as his belly already was from having a Healing incision in it, he didn’t want anything else irritating it any more than his doctor did, so loose clothing was the way to go.

Bobby couldn’t help a grimace and a few pained groans as his son worked with the nurse to get him settled in the front seat so he was riding shotgun. He figured he’d need a dose of the painkiller he was being sent home with by the Time they got him in the house, if the young woman’d let him have it. She’d already warned him that no amount of Love could get her to stick around, if he let himself get strung out, so he’d agreed to her being the _Keeper of the Vicodin_ while he was on it.

In the truck, the bassist’d to lean his seat back a bit to take some of the pressure off his belly, which made him sigh in relief. Zach chuckled from the back seat as he reached forward to give him a hand to squeeze, his girlfriend busy with buckling her seat belt and putting the truck in gear. He was so ready to get away from this place, even if he was gonna be crashing at a friend’s for a while, that he could almost literally taste it. Then again, maybe that was what lil Vicodin still in his system from the Night before talking, but he didn’t really care. He just wanted to get to a place that he could get some real sleep without being woken up by a damn intercom every few minutes.

“We’re here, love.”

Cracking open his eyes from where he’d been dozing, Bobby saw the front of the younger bassist’s house. “Go get Rikki or Bret,” he told her. “They’re the ones who work out the most besides me and can prolly help Zach better.”

“Ash works out more than you’d think, too,” Aerin chuckled. “Course, that’s if he didn’t go into the office today, and is actually home.”

“Don’t really care, as long as they can handle a guy my size,” the bassist said, refraining from chuckling since it hurt.

“I’ll be back in a minute, then,” she promised, leaning over the console enough to give him a gentle kiss.

“At least you’re closer to being back home, Dad,” his son said, climbing outta the back seat to get started on helping him out.

“Good choice of words,” Bobby responded, smiling. “’Cuz I’m obviously not actually home.”

“Hell, this has damn near become your home in not quite the last Year,” he laughed. He took care to be gentle as he helped him get his right leg out, then start to turn so he could get his left leg out.

Knowing his son was right and focusing on getting out so he wouldn’t fall or otherwise hurt himself, he merely grunted as he got turned so he was sideways in the seat. Hearing a pair of voices made him look up to see his drummer and frontman, as well as the younger bassist heading for the truck. The Silver Fox smiled and managed a wave, but kept his grip on what his girlfriend called the _oh, shit handle_ with his other hand.

Rikki and Ash told the younger Dall to let them handle getting him out since they were actually stronger. If he really wanted to help with this part, he could either go around to the driver’s seat and crawl in to give him a forward push, if he needed it, or be waiting to move behind him to help him balance. Whichever role he didn’t take was gonna be left up to Bret, but they figured he’d be grateful for a break before he wore himself out so much that he couldn’t help at all. Nodding, the youngest man decided on getting the bags that’d been packed and brought to them at the hospital and left them to it, Aerin coming back out to help him with that task.

On a count of three, his drummer and the younger bassist helped pull Bobby’s upper torso forward, Bret reaching across the front seat to gently push on his lumbar. He still couldn’t help a cry as he managed to land on his feet, both arms wrapping around the men on either side of him like they were living crutches as he waited for the Stars flying across his vision to fade.

With his vision cleared so he could see, the older bassist gave them a nod so they’d know he was ready to start heading in. Both Returned the nod before starting to move slowly, each of their arms wrapped around his back to help support him. It was a bit slower-going than he’d have liked, but then again, he was only two Days out from a major surgery–he supposed he shoulda expected such a thing to happen. Now that he thought about it, he’d been pretty slow-moving right after his back surgery, too, if only ’cuz of the migraine he’d left the hospital with.

“Hey, Daddy.”

Looking up as he got settled on the couch, Bobby managed a smile. “Hey, baby girl.”

“C-Can I hug ya?” she asked, looking uncertain. “Or is that gonna hurtcha?”

“Ya can hug me, as long as it’s my upper torso, baby girl,” the bassist said. “Ya just can’t grab me so that you’re gonna put too much pressure on my lower belly.”

Nodding, his daughter leaned down to hug him around his neck, leaving him to wrap his arms around her upper torso instead. “I’m just glad you’re all right, Daddy.”

“Eh, not quite just yet, but I’ma get there soon,” he swore as they let each other go.

“Sooner than even Dr. West was saying, if I’ve my way about it.”

Bobby couldn’t help a chuckle as he looked up to see his girlfriend walking in from the kitchen with a few things in her hands. “And whyddaya say that, sweetheart?”

“I’ma Witch who knows a few other Witches,” she laughed, settling what she was carrying on the coffee table. “I’d like to think I know a few things, and that the others know a few more.”

“So, what’re ya doing?” Zach asked curiously, coming back from putting their bags in her room and one of the guest rooms.

Aerin explained that using Saltwater–preferably made with iodized Salt–to clean his incision’d help it Heal faster than just using rubbing alcohol or peroxide. Sea Salt could be used to make the Saltwater, but iodized table Salt was actually better since iodine was what surgical teams used to clean the area where they’d make an incision prior to surgery.

The other thing she’d brought into the living room with her was a small bottle, whose label read _Tea Tree oil_. Also known as _Melaluca oil,_ it was made by steaming the leaves of the Southeastern Australian Tea Tree, and regardless of formal research, it was pretty effective at clearing up bacterial and fungal infections. So was Lavender oil, now that she thought about it, which was often used as an topical antiseptic in its own right by those who were into Natural Healing and other home remedies. Combined with normally Healing pretty quick on his own, she figured he’d take less than four weeks to Heal, as long as he did what his doctor’d told him to on top of these things.

Bobby looked a bit wary about trying such things, which was when she grinned and held out her arm for him to see. She’d cut herself on a piece of broken glass the Day before her birthday, according to her and the younger bassist, and it’d looked pretty ugly when he’d seen it for himself. Just four Days later, it looked at least half-Healed, despite having been almost deep enough to need stitches to pull it completely closed.

He couldn’t help looking up at her with wide eyes, which just made her laugh as he sputtered for words. Aerin told him that she generally Healed pretty quick, as long as she could stop herself from picking at any scabs, and she’d been using a combination of those three things during the last four Days. Seeing the evidence for himself’d him quickly Changing his mind since he also Healed pretty quick, even from surgery. If it could work for her, he doubted it’d be detrimental to him since he wasn’t allergic to any of those things, as far as he knew.

“This is gonna sting at the least, full-on burn at the most, love,” the young woman warned him as she soaked a Cotton ball in the Saltwater.

“Better than letting this monster get infected,” he told her, holding on to both his kids’ hands.

“Whenever you’re ready for it,” she told him.

“Just do it,” Bobby said, nodding as he took a deep breath. He didn’t even care about the rest of his band–even Richie and Blues–watching as she got to work. “Ow, fuck–that really _does_ fuckin’ burn!”

“Can’t say I didn’t warn ya,” his girlfriend laughed.

“I didn’t think it’d burn this bad, though!” the bassist retorted, his toes curling as he squeezed his kids’ hands.

“Well, it’s a lot deeper than the cut on my arm,” Aerin told him. “Deeper cuts tend to make it hurt worse, depending on one’s pain tolerance.”

“Well, _my_ pain tolerance sucks worse than a two-dollar whore, then!”

Everybody in the room cracked up at that, making the young woman having to pause so she wouldn’t hurt him even worse.

“Only you’d know, love–unless the others’ve had a two-dollar whore before, that is,” she giggled.

“Fuck, I could bite straight through a piece of Oak, and it wouldn’t hurt as bad,” Bobby groaned.

It took a couple more minutes, but she was finally able to quit torturing her poor boyfriend and tape down a fresh piece of gauze as a bandage. If there was one thing that’d be incredibly weird for a while, it was having his belly as smooth as he was used to her legs–and certain other parts–being. Apparently, Dr. West’d shaved his belly before starting the surgery, and while the hair on his head grew pretty fast, body hair took forever. He blamed all the Native American blood in his veins, which was why he didn’t really grow anything but a happy trail and had problems growing a beard sometimes.

With the gauze taped down so it wouldn’t come off, Aerin let him pull his shirt back down since he didn’t want his britches pulled up as high as he normally wore them. He seemed to relax a lot more once she let him do that, but she could still tell he was in a lotta pain from his surgery. Since he hadn’t had any since the Night previous, she decided to let him have one of his Vicodins so he could sleep.

Zach gladly fished out the scrip bottle and shook out on of the pills, but she made him hold off on taking it for a few more minutes. The young woman said he needed at least some Chicken noodle soup on his stomach, or he was gonna regret taking it, if he’d the same reaction she did to narcotic painkillers. Cocking a brow, Bobby couldn’t help wondering what she meant since he didn’t really remember the very Beginning of recovery from his back surgery.

“Do ya wanna make that incision hurt worse from the jerking of throwing up?” she asked him with a knowing smile.

“Fuck, no,” the Silver Fox answered, shaking his head. “Like I said before, this already hurts bad enough, as is.”

“I thought you’d say that,” Aerin laughed. “Which means taking a narcotic on an empty stomach’s a bad idea, ’cuz that’ll make ya start throwing up.”

“Yeah, no–I’d rather not do that,” he reiterated.

“Besides, ya need to eat something, or your body’s not gonna have any fuel to put toward Healing,” the young woman told him.

“Yeah, good point, sweetheart,” Bobby managed to chuckle, even though chuckling made him wince slightly.

It wasn’t long before he was being served a can of Campbell’s since that was the quicker way to go right now, and he was actually kinda hungry, after all. Aside from that and now needing to piss, he was just exhausted after everything he’d been through in the past few Days. That was understandable, and nobody could fault him for wanting to get some sleep since that’d help him Heal quicker, too.

After his basic needs were taken care of and he was settled in his girlfriend’s bed, Bobby was quick to start dozing off. The more his Vicodin kicked in while he was taking care of those things, the drowsier he got, but that was a good thing. He needed his rest and they all knew it, so aside from Aerin cuddling with him till he fell asleep, they left him alone. Course, the guys told him bye since they were due to leave for Los Angeles soon, but said they’d call to check up on him as often as they could. Those were the last things he remembered with any kinda Clarity before he fell into a deep, Dreamless sleep.


	16. Fifteen

Four weeks later, not long after his fifty-eighth birthday, Bobby was headed into Saint Thomas West Hospital for the third Time. The first was obviously due to being rushed to the ER, the second was a two-week post-op checkup his surgeon’d wanted him to come in for. Now, he was going in for a second post-op checkup, and with any Luck, he’d be able to get his stitches taken out today.

If there was one thing he was looking forward to, it was getting the stitches in his outermost layers of meat removed. Deeper into his abdominal and pelvic cavities, Dr. West’d used dissolvable stitches so they wouldn’t have to worry about removing those. After all, the point was for him to Heal, not to h-ve to cut him open again later on to remove stitches he no longer needed. But the ones in the outer layers–namely his flesh–were irritating since they pulled funny, which often made it feel like he was being pinched just from trying to breathe.

Not only that, but they made his incision itch more than he thought was normal when the scab first formed on it during that first week. Aerin’d to cut his nails nearly down to the quick so he’d nothing to scratch with, then still tape oven mitts over his hands at Times. Every inanimate object he coulda used to scratch that area and pick the scab off was kept well outta his reach–even guitar picks, since she’d caught him using one for that very purpose one Time.

“Robert Kuykendall?”

Looking up from the random magazine he’d grabbed after he’d checked in, he saw a nurse waiting for him and nodded as he laid it back down.

“How’re ya feeling today?” she asked as she led him back to get his vitals.

“Pretty good, all things considered,” Bobby chuckled as he followed. “Definitely a lot better than the first Time I wound up here.”

“Well, that’s good to hear,” the nurse told him. “We always wanna hear a report like that from our patients when they come in for post-op visits.”

“I’m sure, especially for the more major surgeries,” he agreed.

Settling on the exam table in the room she led him into, Bobby held out his arm to let her wrap the blood pressure cuff around his arm after slipping his overshirt off. He didn’t really like coming to a doctor and all the shit he’d to suffer through when he did, but if it meant getting these stitches out sooner, he’d do just about anything.

It didn’t take the nurse long to get his vitals and type them into the digital chart, then leave him to his own devices while she went to get his surgeon. He could only sigh as he laid back on the exam table, fingers laced behind his head to help resist his urge to scratch. Whatever lil bit of a scab and dead skin was still around the edges of the incision was driving him crazy, but he didn’t wanna mess anything up right before he saw Dr. West. He also didn’t wanna scratch so much that he wound up a bloody mess right before that happened, ’cuz that might stop him from getting his stitches taken out.

A short while later, there was a knock at the door, and he lifted his head slightly as he called out permission to enter. The bassist sat up when the door opened to reveal his surgeon, and he’d a bit of a smile on his face as the man entered. He wasn’t a doctor by any means, but he’d say he was Healing pretty nicely, so he’d Hope for getting these irritating things out today. If he didn’t, he didn’t know what he’d do besides accidentally claw his belly open from scratching, which he didn’t wanna do.

“How’re ya feeling today, Rob?” the surgeon asked, remembering the nickname he preferred outside his band and anything to do with it.

“Pretty good, like I told your nurse,” Bobby answered. “Well, other than going a lil crazy.”

“Oh–and why’re ya going a lil crazy?” he asked, cocking a brow at him.

“Trying not to scratch this damn thing,” the bassist laughed. “It’s been driving me nuts ever since the first week!”

“Well, that’s normal, so if that’s your reason for going a lil nuts, I’m not too surprised,” Dr. West chuckled.

“My girlfriend taped oven mitts over my hand and hid even guitar picks from me at one point!” he told him.

“Guitar picks?” the surgeon asked, looking surprised.

“I’ma musician for a living,” Bobby chuckled. “Actually, ya mighta heard of the band I’m in.”

“I guess that depends on what genre your band is,” he told him.

“Well, they call it _hair metal_ now, according to my girlfriend,” the bassist said. “I’ve always just called it rock ‘n’ roll.”

“Really, now?” Dr. West looked interested before turning his attention to his chart. “You’ll have to tell me a bit more after we get through the exam.”

“Works for me, ’cuz I want these stitches out before I do something drastic, whether I mean to or not!” he laughed.

Joining his laughter, the surgeon reviewed his chart and asked him a handful of other questions pertaining to his Health. He’d been pretty tired and in a lotta pain at first, but he’d finally gotten to the point that he’d been able to switch from the Vicodin to just regular Tylenol on his own a couple weeks ago. There wasn’t anything like constipation to report, but he wasn’t surprised by that since Aerin’d made sure he followed the diet he’d been put on to the very letter.

Other than the pinching sensation, especially when he’d take a bit too deep a breath, there wasn’t really anything to report. Bobby was glad when his doctor seemed pleased to hear that, not surprised that he wanted to do a quick exam of the incision–or maybe he should be saying scar at this point. He was more than happy to lay back for him, shirt pulled up and fly opened since he told him he didn’t really need to get undressed unless he wanted to. It’d be helpful, but considering where the stitches were, it wasn’t exactly necessary since he’d kept the incision on the small side.

What was revealed was an incision that was maybe two Days away from being fully Healed at flesh-level, which meant the same was likely true for the deeper layers. The bassist couldn’t help a sigh of relief as he heard Dr. West tell him that, knowing that meant he’d definitely get his stitches taken out without having to ask.

“Lemme go get my supplies real quick, and we’ll get started on that,” he told him.

“Sounds good to me,” Bobby agreed, nodding as he pulled his shirt back down for the Time being and sat up.

“I’ll be back in just a couple minutes,” the surgeon said as he opened the door.

“Take your Time, if need be,” he answered. “Just don’t take two hours unless somebody’s dying.”

Dr. West laughed as he closed the door behind him, glad his patient possessed a strong sense of humor. Being able to crack jokes during his recovery like that was no doubt part of what’d helped him Heal so fast, ’cuz the better a mood a person was in, the better and faster they Healed. He didn’t even know about the herbal remedies Aerin’d been using yet, and he wasn’t so sure he wanted to tell him.

“All right, let’s get these stitches out so ya can go back home,” he said upon reentering the exam room.

“Well, back to my girlfriend’s house,” Bobby told him. “I’ve been staying with her and her roommate so I’d be closer to here for shit like this.”

“Really?” the surgeon asked as he started setting up his supplies.

“Yeah, that’s actually why I was up here when this happened,” he answered, nodding as he laid back again. “I came up from Florida–which’s where I actually live–to surprise her for her birthday, and wound up in the hospital the Morn after her birthday.”

_“Ooh,_ what a way to celebrate,” Dr. West winced.

“For her, not really,” the bassist said. “Her birthday’s already hard to get through, ’cuz the Day I wound up in the hospital woulda been her grampa’s birthday, if he were still alive. The Day after that’s the anniversary of his Death, which just makes it harder.”

“Yikes.” He couldn’t help another sympathetic wince. “Yeah, her boyfriend winding up hospitalized for something so serious on either of those things definitely wasn’t good.”

“No doubt that was why she cried herself to sleep in my friend’s arms while I was in surgery,” Bobby told him as he got started. “Rikki said he and my son were surprised by how well she kept it together, but once I got into surgery, she just broke down like a baby.”

“Sounds like an incredibly strong woman,” the surgeon said. “You’re lucky to have a woman like her in your corner.”

“Too well I know it, and she never lets me forget it,” he chuckled.

As Dr. West was working on removing his stitches, careful to be as gentle as he could, he Circled back around to what he’d meant about said girlfriend hiding guitar picks from him. The bassist laughed in between getting stitches out, still amused as he explained how she’d caught him trying to pick part of the scab off with one ’cuz it was so itchy. Being a musician for a living, he’d a ton of guitar picks laying around–till she swept the house and hid every single one, even her own.

The surgeon couldn’t help laughing, clearly amused by how desperate his patient’d been to scratch the itchy spots while he was Healing. It was something that was fairly common, but he’d never heard of one taking a guitar pick and using that. Maybe he’d other patients who had, but just hadn’t told him, or maybe none’d ever thought of that–he didn’t know, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to.

Once the last stitch was out and the incision was deemed Healed, Bobby sat back up and closed his fly before pulling his shirt down. There was one other thing on his mind that he wanted to ask about before he left today, and he considered it relatively serious. He’d been banned from having sex right after his surgery to make sure nothing got ripped back open from the often frantic movements. In the last four weeks, he’d been a good boy and abided by his doctor’s orders–especially when he was doped up on the Vicodin and usually asleep. But now that he’d Healed enough to lose the stitches, he couldn’t help wondering if that ban was to be lifted, and with good reason.

Dr. West said that if he was Healed enough to remove his stitches, he didn’t see any reason why he couldn’t Return to even _that_ part of his normal Life. He just warned him not to go too crazy–as in, no hanging from chandeliers–during the act for another couple weeks to play it safe. The bassist laughed and said the only thing he’d be hanging from anytime soon’d be the gazebo ceiling, but that was ’cuz there was a bed there. Otherwise, he didn’t plan on hanging from anything, not even a Tree branch, since he liked keeping his feet on the ground.

“Then I definitely don’t see any reason ya can’t have sex,” the surgeon told him.

“Thank the Gods, ’cuz that’s another reason I’m ready to lose my mind,” Bobby laughed. “The first couple weeks, I was too tired and/or doped up to care, but ever since then–yeah, I’ve been getting pretty desperate since I took that as no jerking off, too.”

“Prolly best thatcha didn’t service yourself, either,” he told him. “Ya coulda gotten a lil too zealous with it and still accidentally ripped your stitches open.”

“Well, there’s another reason I’m glad that ban’s lifted, too,” the bassist admitted, now starting to sound nervous.

Dr. West cocked a brow at him curiously, waiting for him to continue.

“I was already thinking about popping the question to my girlfriend before all this started,” he explained. “But the way she’s taken care of me–sometimes at the expense of herself–the past few weeks has just made me wanna do that even more.”

“And you’ve been holding off ’cuz ya thought doing such a thing’d lead to something sexual,” the surgeon said, nodding as he got it.

“Well, that and the fact that I haven’t felt well enough to go get the ring yet!” Bobby responded with a laugh.

He couldn’t help laughing along with his patient as he finished recording a few things in his chart before telling him that he was free to go. He reiterated that he should still take it easy and not get overly zealous with anything sexual, but he was cleared to even have sex, as long as he followed those orders for another couple weeks. The bassist nodded as he headed out to the front desk to get checked out, already pulling out his phone as he walked. A quick text to Ash confirmed that the younger bassist was free, which was just what he’d wanted to read when he got a response.

After getting checked out, Bobby headed back out to his girlfriend’s truck so he could go meet up with Ash at the closest Jared’s, which happened to be about twenty miles away in Franklin. He was nervous since he’d have to tread carefully with this, but he hoped that his Luck’d hold and he’d get what he wanted later tonight–in more ways than one.


	17. Sixteen

After a couple hours of driving himself even more nuts with the younger bassist at his side, Bobby’d finally found the perfect ring. It was designed to look like a Crown–well, more like a Tiara, he thought–with a Princess-cut Amethyst as the Central Stone. A pair of Black Diamonds flanked the Amethyst, and there were gorgeous Opals wrapping all the way around the band in a half-Infinity style. It’d come with a matching wedding band, but he’d wanted something that was a bit more elaborate, yet not overly so.

That’d been where Ash’d come in, ’cuz since he knew the young woman fairly well–prolly better in some ways since they often talked fashion together–he’d found the perfect wedding band. Also designed to look like a Crown, each Crown tip sported a small Black Diamond of its own, and they were also in what he’d call a half-Infinity style.

Down below the tips, there were two rows of Stones that wrapped around the band as far as the tips reached. The first was more Amethyst, and in the tiny spot where each Crown tip started, there was technically a third row due to the Stone used to keep everything even. The second full row of Stones was more Black Diamonds, which was exactly what he’d wanted when he’d started his search. Aerin hated plain jewelry, and her opinion on White Diamonds were that they were cold and tasteless due to their lack of any Color. Her favorite Stones were a combination of Amethyst, Garnet, Sapphire, and Black Obsidian, but the only Stone he could find jewelry in was Amethyst.

“I think this is gonna be perfect,” Bobby said with a grin.

“And you’re sure about doing this?” the younger bassist asked, his brow cocked. “Ya know how she feels about getting married and having kids.”

“That goes for a legal marriage–which isn’t what I’m planning,” he answered, his grin turning a bit mischievous.

“So, you’re not actually proposing to your girlfriend?” the saleswoman in front of them asked, sounding confused.

“Oh, I am–we’re just gonna do it a lil differently than one’d expect,” the older bassist told her. “She’s against legal marriage after seeing how it affected several people she was once close to, and after a nasty divorce of my own about twenty Years ago, I can’t say I blame her.”

She still looked just as lost as Ash did, which made him chuckle.

“My girlfriend’s into a lotta what could be deemed _alternative practices,”_ Bobby explained. “She’s already told me she’d compromise with something called a handfasting, but she wouldn’t ever get married legally.”

_“Ohhhh,”_ the younger bassist breathed. “Must be another one of those Pagan things.”

“I’ll explain it in the truck, but yeah,” he answered, nodding. “And even still, I plan on tacking something else on so she’ll realize she’s the one with the Power here, not me.”

That just made Ash look confused again as he moved on to the other part of what he wanted to do, which was get his own wedding band while he was already here. He wanted it to match what he’d just picked out as Aerin’s wedding set, which meant it’d to be of a similar style. Luckily for him, they’d a mens’ wedding band that was all but identical to what he’d chosen as her wedding band, just without any Stones in it.

Not only was it practically identical to the bejeweled wedding band, but it came in both black chrome and Sterling Silver. Even though the black chrome woulda matched well enough, he decided on the Sterling Silver version–even though it was supposed to be paired with a Rose Gold female version of a couple’s set.

With his purchases made a short while later, the pair of bassists headed back out to his girlfriend’s truck. Bobby’d picked the younger bassist up from his office on his way to the jewelry store, so he was gonna drop him off there so he could pick up his car. That’d been his reason–aside from wanting privacy–for saying he’d explain what a handfasting was once they were back in the truck. He already kinda didn’t like Ash mentioning Paganism out in the open, if only ’cuz Aerin was a bit selective on who she revealed that part of herself to.

“So, what the hell’s this _handfasting_ thing?” he asked once they’d closed their doors.

“It’s a Pagan marriage,” Bobby answered, shoving the key into the ignition. “From what I’ve been able to find out online, it’s mostly Celtic in origin.”

“Really?” the younger bassist asked, surprised. “I’ve Irish in me, and I’ve never heard of it.”

“From what I can tell, most of the general public hasn’t these Days,” he told him with a shrug. “It’s an Ancient rite, but few actually practice it anymore–although it seems to be making a comeback.”

“So, what’s it supposed to be exactly? ’Cuz I’m sure there’s more to it,” Ash said, sounding curious.

“Well, it seems to be a lot like those Spiritual marriages ya hear about Mormons doing when they take multiple wives,” the older bassist started as he backed outta their parking Space. “It’s very intimate in Nature, but not legally-binding the way marriage as we’ve always known it is.”

“Sounds like exactly the kinda thing Aerin’d want, for sure,” he said, nodding.

“Another of the key points is the binding,” Bobby continued. “It’s symbolic of binding one’s Soul to that of their spouse.”

The younger bassist looked confused, which made him chuckle as he merged onto I-sixty-five so they could head back to Nashville. Careful to keep his attention on the traffic around him, he explained that during a handfasting, the couple’s hands were literally bound together. Anything from scarves to belts–even braided rope–could be used for that part, depending on what the couple wanted. It was during the binding that their vows were said to one another, kinda like during the Traditional marriages they were both more familiar with.

Ash could definitely see how and why his friend and roommate’d agree to compromise with a handfasting now, if she refused to actually marry. It sounded like something that was far more intimate and meaningful, not to mention harder to truly undo versus pieces of paper that could be nullified and burnt. Honestly, it kinda made him think he’d prolly rather handfast–if he ever found someone he wanted to be with like that–instead of actually getting married.

Once he’d dropped him off, the older bassist started heading back to the house so he could set up a helluva surprise for his girlfriend. He’d perfect Timing on his arrival home, too, ’cuz she told him that she needed to run a couple errands, now that he was back from his doctor’s appointment. Aerin was ecstatic to hear that he’d been able to lose his stitches, saying he’d have to fill her in completely when she got back, which shouldn’t take her too long. Giving her a quick kiss before she took off, he headed into the house to get to work since he knew Time of was of the Essence. When she said she wouldn’t be long, she usually meant it, as long as traffic and other people cooperated with her.

Later that Eve, Bobby’d managed to set up the surprise he’d been cooking up ever since leaving Jared’s that afternoon. He looked over his handiwork, smiling contently since he was satisfied with how his setup’d turned out, despite how he’d rushed to get it done. What he’d thrown together looked perfect to him, and he hoped his girlfriend thought so, too, once he brought her outside.

In the gazebo they spent a lotta Time in, he’d scattered Rose and Tiger Lily petals all over the bed and up the walkway leading to it. Candles were scattered all around the short railing that surrounded the gazebo on all but one of its eight sides, lending a bit of heat on this cold Night as well as setting the mood. The majority of the heat came from the kerosene heater he’d hidden behind it so it was outta sight, but close enough to keep them warm without setting anything on Fire. Against the far railing, there was a table for two set up, and all he’d to do was dish up and serve dinner so they could eat.

Aerin thought the house insanely too quiet when she walked in a couple hours after leaving to run her errands. The kitchen Light was on, but nobody was in that particular room, and it didn’t appear that anybody was in any other room of the house. Ash’s car wasn’t in the driveway, so he obviously wasn’t home since he almost never parked in the garage unless some really bad Weather was moving in, and that was just to keep it from getting damaged.

Since he’d actually started dating Aidan, she figured the Tom Keifer look-alike’d come back down after taking some Time off work. If that was the case, her roommate was likely out on a date with her and wouldn’t be home till late, which’d explain his missing car. That left her to wonder where the hell her own boyfriend was, ’cuz without her truck since he always flew up from Miami, he didn’t have a way to go anywhere unless he walked.

“Good Eve, sweetheart.”

Turning from where she’d been about to go check their bedroom, she saw him standing next to the back door. “Ya scared the hell outta me, love!”

“Well, that certainly wasn’t my Intent,” Bobby chuckled. She noted that there was a bit of a nervous tone to his voice, but didn’t get a chance to ask him about it. “C’mon with me–I’ve something I wanna show ya.”

“Ya don’t say, now?” the young woman asked instead, cocking a brow curiously.

“I do say,” he answered, managing a smile as he nodded.

“And just where’re we going?” Aerin asked, curious since he never sounded nervous about anything.

The bassist chose not to answer her, but instead opened the back door and gestured for her to head onto the deck. Now she was really curious, considering how cold it’d gotten once the Sun’d set for the Day, but she still did as he wanted her to. Despite the shiver that ran through her from the cold Air, she was as excited as she was anxious about whatever he was wanting.

Looking down at the gazebo, the young woman’s jaw dropped when she saw the flickering of Candles all around it. He was clearly up to something, and looking up at him, she could see the Change in his expression in the Light of the Waxing Gibbous overhead. Bobby chuckled and gestured for her to head down to the gazebo, and she couldn’t help cocking a brow at him, even as she headed for the stairs that led to the pool. Damn him and his Secretive Nature, even though she knew he couldn’t help it since he was a Scorpio–if one went by the twelve-sign Zodiac.

Down at the gazebo, Aerin couldn’t help a surprised gasp when she saw the Romantic setting he’d clearly been going for. Turning to him, she couldn’t help her wide eyes and dropped jaw, which just made him laugh softly as he escorted her over to the table set up on the far side. While she hadn’t doubted his ability to pay attention, she hadn’t thought he’d done so whenever she made linguine ever since that first Night after Poison’s last tour Ended.

_“Mmm,_ tastes exactly like it should,” she said after taking a bite, glad to find it was still hot.

“I’m glad,” the bassist chuckled as he picked up his own fork. “It was a bit hard to tell since I’ve never made it, and ya don’t seem to actually measure anything.”

“’Cuz my mom’s the one who taught me how to make it, and she never measured shit,” Aerin laughed. “She was a Kitchen Witch to the core like that, so her way of knowing when to stop was when the Ancestors’d whisper in her ear, _Stop, child!”_

“Seriously?” he laughed, finding that hilarious.

“Well, not really, but that was our running joke,” the young woman giggled.

“Still, I’m glad it turned out more or less how it was supposed to,” Bobby told her.

“You’re still gonna pay for it later,” she retorted with a giggle.

“Ugh, don’t even remind me of that right now,” the bassist laughed. “I wanna enjoy my dinner while I can, not ruin it with Thoughts of the heartburn to come!”

Both of them cracked up for a few moments before digging into their food in earnest, Aerin finally pausing for a breath to ask him about his doctor’s appointment that afternoon. She was elated to hear that not only had he gotten his stitches taken out, but he’d even been cleared to have sex again. That was prolly the hardest part of the last month for her, aside from not liking to see him in so much pain–she’d gotten too used to having him, not sex toys, in the past Year.

Once they were both done with their food, the young woman felt a shift in the Energy, namely the Anxiety that was eating at her boyfriend. He took a deep breath as he reached across the table to grab her hand, almost as if to reassure himself that she was real. That concerned her as she laced their fingers together, her brow furrowing as she watched him closely to try and read him.

After a few anxious moments, Bobby finally took a deep breath as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. He knew it was now or never, ’cuz if he chickened out now, he might never get another chance to do this, especially when it’d be so meaningful to both of them. That said, he moved to get up and gently pull her to her feet, wanting to do this as close to what he considered properly as he could. His girlfriend seemed even more confused, and that was exactly what he wanted till he started talking.

“Aerin, there’s a lotta shit I wanna say that I either should, or just haven’t had the chance to yet,” he said.

_“Ooookaaaay,”_ the young woman responded, drawing out the word.

“The Night I first metcha–words can’t even describe how I felt, or how it wound up Changing my Life, and for the better,” Bobby told her. “This past month, you’ve had every reason and opportunity to leave me–butcha stayed by my side instead, no matter how much I got on your nerves.”

She simply cocked a brow as she continued to listen, obviously starting to get suspicious.

“If I ever doubted how much I loved ya–and how much _you_ loved _me_ in Return–before, I know better than to do that now,” the bassist said, taking a deep, shaky breath. “I can’t see my Life withoutcha in it from here on out, so…”

Aerin’s eyes widened as he reached into his pocket, pulled something out, then slowly lowered himself to one knee.

“Will ya do me the greatest Honor of handfasting with me, and if not, at least take this ring as a physical reminder of my promise to always be there for ya till Death–and even beyond?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again with the links to pics, I know! LOL! But these're the rings I was describing in the very Beginning of the chapter, just with a few differences to Aerin's wedding set. They're actually from a company called Vancaro, but I can't stand Jared's jewelry–it really IS either too plain or too gaudy, and I really DO hold the opinion that White Diamonds're simply cold and tasteless. Gimme some fuckin' Color in my jewelry any Day of the week!
> 
> That said, the first's obviously Aerin's engagement ring, the second's her wedding band, and the last's Bobby's wedding band. I'll explain why I picked the ones I did in the next chapter, so it'll make sense soon.  
> ~Angel
> 
> Link to Aerin's Engagment Ring (pictured on the left, next to its actual matching wedding band)–https://media.vancaro.com/product/image/n/r/nrc0439-2-20180728.jpg
> 
> Link to Aerin's Wedding Band–https://media.vancaro.com/product/image/q/s/qs0134w-20190911.jpg
> 
> Link to Bobby's Wedding Band–https://media.vancaro.com/product/image/q/s/qs0155m-3-0914-20180728.jpg


	18. Seventeen

Tears welled up in Aerin’s eyes as she took in the Beauty of the ring her boyfriend was holding up for her to see. If there was one thing she knew about him, it was that he’d never get her what amounted to costume jewelry, especially for something like this. Every last Stone was no doubt as real as they came, and if it wasn’t Sterling Silver, he’d gone all-out and made sure it was made of Platinum since she hated even White Gold.

It bespoke how well he really paid attention, given that he’d remembered her tastes when he bought this ring, whether it was months or hours ago. She couldn’t help letting those tears slip down her cheeks, making them look like glittering Diamonds in both the Moon- and Candlelight. They twinkled all the more as she finally regained her senses enough to nod, holding out her left hand as she did.

Bobby heaved a sigh of relief as he took her hand and gently slid the ring onto her finger, delighted to see that it was a perfect fit. He thought he’d gotten it in the right size, based on the rings she normally wore on a daily basis–which she’d taken off for some reason–but it was reassuring to know that it actually fit. Rising from his knee, which was Beginning to get sore due to being an old man, he gently cupped her cheeks in his palms and thumbed away those tears. Leaning down as she rose on her tiptoes, he captured her lips with his in one of the most gentle, but passionate kisses he’d ever given her.

“Bobby…I can’t believe ya actually did this,” the young woman sniffled, reaching up to wipe at her face once they’d broken the kiss.

“Ya damn well better,” he chuckled, ecstatic beyond words. “I’ve been thinking about this for at least a couple months, but I just hadn’t gotten around to it.”

“So, what made ya decide to actually do it?” Aerin asked curiously.

“My surgery, if I’m completely honest,” the bassist answered. “Made me realize just how short Life can be, considering I coulda died on the table, if my heart’d stopped. I didn’t wanna waste anymore Time, but I’d to wait till I felt up to actually getting the ring.”

She couldn’t help laughing, now realizing that musta been where part of his impatience to Heal was coming from.

“Once Dr. West cleared me for sex earlier–well, I figured getting it before I came home was prolly the way to go,” Bobby admitted. “’Cuz let’s face it–I’ma needy ol’ man, and with the feeling I got…”

“What–that I’ma needy young woman who was gonna do _this?”_ the young woman asked with a grin.

He couldn’t help a gasp as he felt her grab him, the gentle squeeze she gave him moments later making him groan as he twitched. Not being able to have her while he was recovering’d been driving him absolutely crazy, but there hadn’t been anything he could do. Well, not beyond the couple wet Dreams he’d woken up to when he’d lay down for a nap, but she’d stay up to get some chores done.

Aerin let out a devious laugh as she gave him another squeeze, her other arm wrapped around his waist so she could press as close as possible to him. She’d certainly missed feeling what what currently in her hand, just in other places since no one could deny that feeling better for both of them. Now that he was cleared, she fully Intended to show him just how much she loved him–in a couple different ways. He’d never gotten head from her ’cuz she generally didn’t like dishing it out, but she thought it at least somewhat appropriate for tonight, as special as it was.

The bassist growled as he started backing her toward the bed, loving the way she looked in the Candlelight. She looked even better once her knees hit the edge of the mattress and buckled, sending her sprawling across it so she was just as his body demanded she be. Bobby took care to be gentle as he crawled onto it with her, practically looming as he watched her scoot backward so she could actually stretch out–and so could he.

“What the–” he started, cut off by her scooting underneath him before he could even kiss her again.

“Shut up and enjoy it before I Change my mind,” he heard, her words a bit muffled.

_“Ohhhh, Gods,”_ the bassist groaned, unable to help bucking slightly as he suddenly felt a moist warmth wrap around him.

_“Mmmm,”_ the young woman hummed, bobbing her head experimentally.

He couldn’t help an out-and-out whimper, his hips bucking again as she sucked at his tip.

“Like that, huh?” Aerin chuckled, a sultry note to her voice.

Unable to actually answer her, the bassist somehow managed to flip himself onto his back, his arms starting to shake from the effort of holding himself up combined with the pleasure. His girlfriend let out a devious giggle as she followed his lead, pausing long enough to pull his jeans down further so she’d more room to work. The way those Chocolate eyes glittered up at him, he knew she was gonna make sure he was put through the wringer and enjoyed this Night to the fullest.

As the Sun slowly started its daily ascent over the horizon, the young woman snuggled closer to her now- _fiancé_ where they slept in the gazebo bed. They’d stayed up till at least one in the Morn, pleasuring each other and making Love till they were both completely spent. When they’d finally fallen asleep, Bobby was flat on his back, her head on his shoulder as she left an arm and leg draped over his waist and hips.

During the Night, he’d woken up to her grinding on his thigh in her sleep, her soft whimpers drawing a smile from him. Taking care to be gentle–and avoid waking her, if possible–he rolled her over so she was the one sprawled out on her back and moved to kneel between her knees. He made sure her wake-up call was worth it as he ate her out till she was forced to muffle herself with a pillow to avoid waking any of the neighbors. From there, he’d certainly made a Truth of the old Poison lyric, _So I roll her over in the middle of the Night, and I rock my baby till the Mornin’ Light._

Now, Aerin was the one rolling her baby over and rocking their World, although it was no longer the middle of the Night. Even still, she knew it was gonna get hot in the gazebo bed, and with a quickness–which was a good thing since the heater’d run outta kerosene a couple hours ago. Horny or no, she was freezing right now, and friction was a good way to generate some body heat and warm up.

“Good Gods,” Bobby chuckled, panting as they flopped down after their latest round. “What a wake-up call, sweetheart.”

“Hey, you did the same thing to me,” she laughed. “Actually, ya made a Truth outta an old Poison lyric.”

“I did that on purpose,” the bassist told her, giving her a devious grin as he pulled back enough to look at her.

“On purpose or by accident, do ya hear me complaining?” Aerin asked.

“Course not, ’cuz you were just as needy as I was,” he answered, moving to gently kiss her.

_“Mmm,_ ’cuz I’d been deprived of my Silver Fox for too long,” she said with a hum.

“So, what the hell made ya start calling me that?” Bobby asked curiously. “I mean, you’ve done it since before we were even dating, but…”

“Ya wouldn’t believe me, if I told ya,” the young woman laughed.

Now he was even more curious, not to mention determined to find out–even if that meant tormenting her by bringing her right to the edge of orgasm, then denying her till she told him. Aerin still managed to keep her Silence, shooting him a challenging grin as he voiced his threat like that’d get her to break without actually doing it.

The bassist almost never backed down from a challenge, which made his grin turn a bit feral as he started doing just that. Of course, her hips bucked as he tormented her Love button, knowing that for being so sensitive, it could take a helluva beating. He’d actually been surprised at just how much that part of her anatomy could take before she’d to threaten to cut his hands off, but he used it to his advantage now. Due to how much it could take, he could keep going for hours, even when she begged him to stop ’cuz she swore she couldn’t handle another orgasm.

Aerin finally broke her Silence after he’d gotten her off another four Times in addition to all the Times over the course of the Night. Her _fiancé_ settled beside her, pulling her close to him as he let out his tender side while she was catching her breath enough to even talk. Not only that, but he fully Intended to keep her warm by keeping her snuggled close, but he wasn’t expecting her to finally say she still wasn’t telling unless he told why he’d picked the shape of a Crown for her engagement ring.

“I picked that ’cuz you’re so much more to me than the Sun my Solar System orbits around, the Moon that Lights my way, and the Stars that Guide me,” Bobby said. “You’re the Center of my very Universe–you’re my Queen.”

Tears welled up in her eyes again as she pulled him closer for another kiss. “And you’re my King, whether it’s of rock ‘n’ roll or anything else.”

The bassist couldn’t help a laugh at the Elvis Presley reference. “I’ll be your King of everything, as long as you’re my Queen till the End of Time.”

“Forever and always,” Aerin promised.

“Always and forever,” he swore in Return. “Now, keep your End of the bargain before I’ve to torture ya again.”

“All right, all right–my clit can’t take anymore for a while,” the young woman laughed.

Bobby chuckled, listening Intently as she started telling her tale, ’cuz she was sure it’d be a good one, whatever it was. She swore she’d started talking to a chick who fan a few Poison fan pages on various social media sites–which he wouldn’t have seen since he hadn’t joined that particular craze. This chick’d referred to him as a Silver Fox when they were talking about more recent pictures of him that actually showed where he’d gone completely gray.

When she sat back and thought about it, Aerin couldn’t deny that particular description of him being an apt one. He was certainly a Fox when it came to how hot he was, and she meant that for the version of him that was laying here beside her and the younger one that coulda been her daddy. And she’d say his hair was more of a Silvery Color, just without a Metallic sheen, than actually gray like gunmetal or anything. Ever since then, the silly lil nickname for him’d stuck, and once she’d met him in person, she just couldn’t help herself.

The bassist chuckled again as he kissed her, thinking that there were certainly weirder nicknames out there, and that he’d been called far worse in his Life. But whether endearing or ridiculous, it kinda mirrored the nickname he’d called her in his head ever since the Night they met–he was her Silver Fox, and she was his Shadow Kitten.

“After Mishy and I got divorced, I never thought I’d find anyone else I wanted to give such a ridiculous nickname to,” he chuckled, moving to prop himself up on one elbow.

“Ya don’t say, now?” Aerin asked, practically purring as he tucked her hair behind her ear and gently traced her cheekbone with his fingers.

_“Mmm hmm,”_ the bassist hummed, simply studying her.

“Well, I can’t say that I ever thought any differently,” she admitted. “Not after how the majority of my relationships Ended, and after like–a week, at best, most of the Time.”

“Yet here we are, together and more than happy with it,” Bobby sighed.

“I’d rather spend the rest of my Life with you and in your arms than anywhere else,” the young woman swore.

“I wouldn’t want anyone else in my Life and arms,” he told her. “And to think that all this started with a chance meeting.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnnd that's a wrap on this one, folks! I've got ideas for how I could keep going, buuuut...I think they're better suited to a sequel! Otherwise, this story's gonna run on for, like–50chapters, 'cuz I just can't seem to stop the random ideas from popping into my brain... I also prefer Ending a story around 20 chapters, if I write one that long–it just depends on when the Inspiration runs out and it just feels right to End it.
> 
> Hopefully y'all enjoyed reading this as much as I've enjoyed writing it! I fully Intend to get started on the sequel tonight since I've no idea when the fuck I'll go to bed, but it prolly won't get posted till tomorrow unless I get a Wild Hare up my ass... Au revoir, all!  
> ~Angel


End file.
